David Koresh: The Sinful Messiah
David Koresh, born Vernon Howell, became the leader of the Branch Davidians, when the religious group’s predecessor died in 1987. He was charismatic, of course, as all cult leaders tend to be. He knew everything about the Bible and believed he could speak to God.
Source: McLennan County Sheriff’s Office/Public domain/Wikimedia Commons
Koresh’s name started showing up in the media via the Waco Tribune-Herald in February of 1993. They called him the “The Sinful Messiah” (a term Koresh coined for himself) in a series of articles that revealed child abuse and Koresh’s claim that he was the father of more than a dozen children, to mothers as young as 12.