Christian Parents Perform “Exorcism” on 4-Year-Old
Lincoln, Missouri is a small town in Benton County located about 100 or so miles southeast of Kansas City. It boasts a population of around 1,190 residents, many of whom are deeply religious. Today’s story takes place in this god-fearing town, and the acts that took place weren’t even remotely close to godly.
On December 20th, 2020, Sergeant Wilson of the Benton County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to a home on Buckskin Lane in Lincoln, Missouri with regards to a possible domestic disturbance. While in route, dispatchers advised him that there was a possible dead juvenile female within the home.
That little girl was 4-year-old Jessica Joy Mast. Upon arrival, Sergeant Wilson was greeted by Jessica’s father, James Mast, who according to the sergeant didn’t express the types of emotions expected of a father whose daughter had just been killed. James led Sergeant Wilson upstairs to Jessica’s bedroom, where she was observed laying on the floor next to a set of bunk beds wrapped in a pink blanket.
James advised the sergeant that he had covered her with the blanket after he found her. After removing the blanket, Sergeant Wilson observed that Jessica’s skin was cold to the touch and her eyes were partially open. Severe purple bruising was observed on her neck down to her feet on both sides of her body. Some of which appeared to have been inflicted upon the four-year-old with a belt.
Her legs were covered in open wounds that appeared to be the result of blisters rupturing. Her hair was wet and tied into a ponytail. The sergeant also observed that Jessica had thrown up and the remnants which were located by her head had not been cleaned up by anyone. When Sergeant Wilson asked James what had happened, he claimed that his neighbors came over to his house and beat Jessica and that they even had video of them entering his home.
He claimed that after they entered the premises, they turned off the interior surveillance, went into his bedroom to retrieve the belts, and made him watch as they beat Jessica with it. And actually, this was not the first time that this had happened. In fact, James claimed that his neighbors had been entering his home on a regular basis and harassing his family.
On occasion, Jessica had actually ran to her parents for comfort, but according to James, they were not allowed to help her. Instead, James ran from his little girl. Next, Sergeant Wilson spoke with James wife, Mary, who was laying on a bed next to a crib in a bedroom at the other end of the hallway.
When asked what happened, Mary echoed James’ account and shared that she had been attacked as well. When asked if she ever contacted law enforcement regarding these home intrusions, she replied no, and that quote, “This has been a huge God thing that they convinced us of.” End quote. When asked if the infant, 11-month-old Justin, had been injured, Mary told the sergeant that thankfully he had not been.
Sergeant Wilson reviewed the camera footage that James had told him about. In the video, Jessica and her two-year-old brother Nathaniel can be seen in the kitchen table eating while a man and a woman identified as Courtney Almond and Ethan Mast entered the room, followed by James. Courtney allegedly picks up Mary’s cell phone and goes through it, pointing out something to Ethan on the screen.
Courtney then motion to the plug for the camera, which had been mounted at top the kitchen cabinets, and Ethan is seen walking towards the camera, and then the video goes blank. James stated that the video had been taken between 8 and 8:08 in the morning and that Courtney and Ethan advised him that if he or Mary told anyone what they were doing, they would go to hell and if he contacted law enforcement that they would attack him as well.
James went on to explain that he was tired of being harassed and controlled and that it was sick of Courtney and Ethan to keep doing this to them. James stated that he was a Christian and Sergeant Wilson advised him that a Christian wouldn’t allow this to keep happening to their daughter. James retorted that he was told that God was talking to him through Courtney.
The two went back downstairs and retrieved the belt in question from a shelf that was located in a bedroom near the front door. And James took a seat at the kitchen table while Sergeant Wilson went back upstairs to speak with Mary. Sergeant Wilson asked Mary if she had any bruises and if James had beaten her. She claimed that she had some on her back and advised the sergeant that it was the neighbors who beat her and not James.
She further went on to explain that she had not contacted law enforcement because the neighbors were doing it for God and that she believed it until it started getting serious. She then advised the sergeant that she was demonic and her daughter Jessica was demonic as well. When asked if there were any other kids in the house and if they had been beaten, Mary told the sergeant yes, her son Nathaniel, who was in a bedroom two doors down on the opposite side of the hallway.
Sergeant Wilson observed a small boy laying face down in a crib with severely bruised thighs. At this discovery, Sergeant Wilson contacted EMS as well as Deputy Dherty from the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, who was in charge of taking photos and collecting evidence, and then finally CPS to remove the remaining kids from the home.
Sergeant Wilson then went back to speak with Mary and to document her bruising. Her back was covered in purple welts, and she said she had to wear depens due to the extent of some of her injuries. When asked where her neighbors lived, Mary said they lived just across the way and that Courtney had lived with them for a period of time.
But when she did, it was bad. When notified by CPS that they would be taking away her remaining kids, Mary seemed at peace with that. The sergeant returned to the kitchen to further question James, who advised them that he had been beaten as well previously. He disroed and numerous spoon-shaped bruises were observed on his backside.
When asked how his neighbors were able to gain access to his home, James stated that Courtney had the access code to the front door. He also noted that even though he shared the same last name with Ethan, they were of no relation. I know with the similar names and the many cast of characters here, it can be a little confusing.
So, we’re going to make a picture up of the four, discerning who they are and what they do, so that way there’s no confusion to the listener. Sergeant Wilson went on to question James further about the incident that transpired, resulting in Jessica’s death, including why she was found with wet hair. James advised that Courtney and Ethan had forced Mary to take Jessica to a nearby pond and to dip her into the icy water.
James also noted that his neighbors normally came over after dark, so the morning visit was unusual. James also noted that Courtney and Ethan also forced Mary to beat their son and took video footage of the attack with her cell phones to use it against Mary. When asked if he was absolutely sure that he wasn’t beating his kids, he stated, quote, “No, I’m not.
I don’t do that to my kids. it was all I could do to not get a gun out.” End quote. He also noted that Courtney had threatened to put a bullet through his head. Sergeant Wilson went back upstairs to the room where Jessica was found and retrieved a nighty that had been wadded up on the floor as evidence.
Then he went back into the room where Mary had remained to question her further about the incident. When questioned about the pond, Mary advised that she was forced to dip Jessica in the icy water and that the four-year-old was then placed on the bank without any clothing or warmth. Mary was then forced to swim around the pond by Courtney and Ethan until she was told that she could come back.
Allegedly, this was not the first time that there had been an incident regarding the pond. When they got back into the house, Ethan and Courtney allegedly beat Jessica with a belt because she couldn’t stand. When Sergeant Wilson went back downstairs, James handed him a church pamphlet which included a photo of Ethan Mast.
The Mast family attended the same church in Benton County as their neighbors. At this point, we should really talk a little bit about how these folks all know one another. The four adults were part of an Anabaptist church called Gospel Light Fellowship. This was confirmed by True Crime Daily. It’s been alleged that some parishes of this church promoted beating kids as a means of exorcism to remove demons.
The church allegedly had a padded room to stifle screams and used implements such as paddles with holes drilled into them so that way they would sting more. Ethan lived with his wife Phyllis across the street from James and Mary. Courtney came into the picture after she was allegedly sent from Pennsylvania for religious counseling.
It is also confirmed through official sources that she spent three years in a mental hospital in Pennsylvania. For what we do not know, this was also confirmed by True Crime Daily. For a time, Courtney also lived with James and Mary, and it’s alleged that she was carrying on affairs with both Ethan and James, even one time taking off with James to a cabin for 2 weeks while Mary was pregnant with Jessica.
Since court proceedings are still taking place as of the time of this recording, some information is still pending official confirmation. There has been other speculation regarding the relationships between these four, but there were no official sources confirming it. You might also be asking why there were internal security cameras in the home.
Part of the reason was because James was often away. However, the more sinister reason was that Courtney and Ethan had access to these security cameras and used them to keep tabs on the family, even speaking through the intercoms when they observed Jessica and Nathaniel acting fussy, which would result in beatings. So, Sergeant Wilson again went over the incident with James for a third time.
When asked again why it took him so long to contact law enforcement, James stated he didn’t call until he went to check on Jessica and found her dead on the floor. He also noted that he’d not checked on Jessica since he had put her to bed, which was hours prior. This was due to the fact that Courtney and Ethan had forbidden the family from rendering care to the little girl.
If they did help her, they claimed Satan would come. He went on to state that Courtney and Ethan had not beaten his kids like that until the date of the incident and the day prior. Mary and her 2-year-old son were transported to Bothwell Hospital for evaluation and treatment. Courtney and Ethan were arrested the following day on December 21st, 2020, and James and Mary were arrested on Christmas Eve.
James and Mary were later released on a $500,000 shity bond and were fitted with GPS tracking devices. They were not allowed to attend Jessica’s funeral. Nathaniel and Justin were first placed in protective custody, but were later released into the custody of their grandparents. Courtney and Ethan were initially charged with secondderee homicide, three counts of firstdegree assault, and firstderee SA, which an unofficial source claimed was allegedly due to an incident involving Mary.
However, some reports from an official source claimed that Courtney and Ethan allegedly forced James and Mary to SA Jessica with another unofficial source claiming that the charge was due to the attack occurring while Jessica was unclothed. Again, we will have all the sources linked in the show notes for you.
In general with any true crime case, but especially one that is still going through the courts, you should always request that the creator post their sources about the case. I’m not saying unofficial source information should never be mentioned, but there needs to be a distinction between official and unofficial information when suspects have yet to be found guilty.
Mary was charged with endangering the welfare of a minor, firstderee DV, firstderee homicide, two counts of armed criminal action, and firstdegree assault. James was charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, first-degree homicide and assault, and armed criminal action. Later, Courtney and Ethan’s charges were upgraded to first-degree homicide.
However, Courtney was later reduced back to second degree and Ethan took a plea deal which reduced his charges as well. We always want to share with you a bit of information about those who have suffered at the hands of the monsters that took their lives. I did find this piece from Jessica’s obituary.
Jessica was a sweet and beautiful young girl who loved to sing Jesus loves me and recite Psalm 23. She enjoyed story time and reading to her brothers. Jessica was known for her friendly and outgoing personality. Her aspiration was to be like her mother. She was predescased in death by her brother Nathan, who was reported to be Nathaniel’s twin.
As this story is still developing, we’ll keep an eye out for updates and keep you informed as new details emerge. Please keep in mind all details are alleged as James, Mary, and Courtney have yet to go to trial and are presumed innocent until proven otherwise. If you appreciated the work we put into this video, if you could hit the like and subscribe button, it goes a long way to helping us in the YouTube algorithm.
