By Breaking Celebrity News Staff

Sixteen men, who have been branded a cult, will stand trial Monday in Cleveland for hate crimes against their fellow Amish, Breaking Celebrity News is reporting.

Samuel Mullet Sr. and his followers, which include four of his seventeen children, his son-in-law and three of his nephews, are accused of hate crimes, evidence tampering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice.

Amongst the alleged crimes, Mullet Sr. is accused of sleeping with married women in order to "cleanse them" of their perceived sins, instructing his followers to shave off the beards and hair of his critics and ordering beatings.

The Church elder has denied any wrongdoing, insisting he did not order the hair cutting, although he admitted that he did not prevent it from happening either.

The men maintain they are being prosecuted as part of a government "witch hunt" and that outsiders have no right to interfere in church matters.

As Breaking Celebrity News previously reported,  the alleged attacks took place in the heart of Ohio's Amish country, which is home to one of the biggest populations of the religion in the U.S., and are aimed to degrade the victims without hurting them.