9 members of messianic Islamic sect accused of slavery, forced marriage and sex offenses in U.K.

British authorities on Wednesday arrested nine members of an Islamic sect on allegations of forced marriage, sex offenses and modern slavery.

The Cheshire Constabulary carried out the arrests at multiple residences in Crewe, about 147 miles northwest of London, at about 8:50 a.m. Wednesday.

The case involves a woman who alleges the nine suspects committed the offenses against her during her time in Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light in 2023, police said.

The religious group moved into Crewe in 2021, according to The Guardian.

“While those arrested are members of the group, I want to make clear that this is not an investigation into the religion. This is an investigation into the serious allegations which have been reported to us,” Constabulary Chief Superintendent Gareth Wrigley said in a news release.

The police did not identify the victim, specify her nationality or identify any of the suspects. The police listed the suspects as:

• An American man, 42, arrested on suspicion of sexual assault.

• Another American man, 42, arrested on suspicion of forced marriage, modern slavery and sexual assault.

• An American woman, 43, arrested on suspicion of modern slavery and sexual assault.

• An Egyptian man, 35, arrested on suspicion of modern slavery and sexual assault.

• An Italian woman, 44, arrested on suspicion of modern slavery and sexual assault.

• A Mexican man, 30, arrested on suspicion of forced marriage, human trafficking and sexual assault.

• Another Mexican man, 30, arrested on suspicion of modern slavery and sexual assault.

• A Spanish man, 35, arrested on suspicion of assault, forced marriage, rape and sexual assault.

• A Swedish woman, 39, arrested on suspicion of modern slavery and sexual assault.

Police did not specify the nature of the modern slavery charges; the British government’s definition of the term includes sexual exploitation, forced domestic servitude and forced labor.

The Cheshire Constabulary said another 13 sect members were arrested on unspecified public order offenses that are unrelated to the case at large.

Authorities are working with partner agencies in the area to take care of 56 children who were being homeschooled at one of the facilities raided Wednesday, according to The Guardian.

The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light is an offshoot of Shiite Islam, with several unorthodox beliefs considered heretical by most Shiites and other types of Muslims, according to CBS News. It is not to be confused with the Ahmadiyya movement founded in what was then British India in the 19th century, whose followers are known as Ahmadis.

The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light is headed by Egyptian-American man Abdullah Hashem, who declared himself the “mahdi,” a messianic figure in Islam meant to come at the end of days, in 2015, according to CBS News.