By Sam Tobin

LONDON (Reuters) -The leader of a “cult-like” Christian group once backed by the Church of England has been convicted of sexually abusing nine women in his congregation, after a jury returned their final verdicts on Thursday.

Chris Brain, 68, led the Nine O’Clock Service, an evangelical church movement based in Sheffield, northern England, in the 1980s and 1990s.

The group’s nightclub-style services, which were held at 9 p.m. on Sundays, were aimed at young people, featured a live band and attracted hundreds of people at its peak.

But, prosecutors said, Brain controlled members of the congregation, cutting them off from family and friends, and abused his position to sexually assault “a staggering number of women”.

Brain also had a “homebase team” of young women who looked

See Full Page