In a plot twist both ironic and completely unsurprising, one of the people responsible for making Sound of Freedom — the conservative Christian-courting drama about child trafficking that’s been blowing up at the box office — a hit has now been arrested for … child trafficking.
According to Newsweek, Fabian Marta was arrested on child kidnapping charges earlier this week. The 51-year-old Missouri native was one of the dozens of investors who helped crowdfund the film’s theatrical run. Marta’s name appears in the film’s credits as one of the “investors [who] helped bring Sound of Freedom to theaters.” He even bragged about his donations to the film on social media.
“The Sound of Freedom movie tackles a very tough subject, and took extraordinary effort to bring it to movie theaters,” read a screenshot of a since-deleted post obtained by Newsweek. “I’m proud to have been a small part of it. If you see the movie look for ‘Fabian Marta and Family’ at the very end of the credits.”
The film — which stars the deeply QAnon-y Jim Caviezel as Tim Ballard, the founder of an anti-child sex-trafficking organization known as Operation Underground Railroad — has dominated the box office, outperforming films like the latest Indiana Jones sequel and Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible entry. However, experts have warned it paints a very “white-savior” view of the issue that could be harmful.
Marta, who donated an undisclosed amount to ensure it would run in theaters after its release was stalled because of the pandemic, is now facing Class A felony charges which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.
(Via Newsweek)