


Fabian Marta, one of the financial backers of surprise hit Sound of Freedom, has reportedly been arrested in Missouri for felony kidnapping of a child.
According to Newsweek and the Missouri Courts website, Marta was arrested July 21 for felony child kidnapping and was charged July 23. (The legal terminology for his arrest is “removing a non-family member below the age of 14 without their parent’s consent.”)
Marta is set to appear in court next on Aug. 28. His bail has been set at $15,000, but he was released July 24, Newsweek reports. If convicted, Marta could face ten years to life in prison.
Marta, 51, allegedly became involved with The Sound of Freedom after Disney opted not to distribute it after filming was completed. A user with Marta’s same name appears to have previously boasted on social media that he backed the film when the production company, Angel Studios, sought crowd-funding in order for the film to be distributed.
In a since-deleted Facebook post, Marta appears to state that he and his family are in the film’s credits under “special thanks.” While the extent of his involvement in the film and the amount he donated have not been made public, he has referred to himself as an “angel investor” and “financial partner” on the film.
Sound of Freedom stars Jim Caviezel as real-life federal agent Tim Ballard, a man who goes to Colombia to rescue children from sex trafficking and founds the non-profit organization Operation Underground Railroad.
The film, which also co-stars Mira Sorvino, Bill Camp and Kurt Fuller, has been embraced by conservatives and QAnon believers for whom “trafficking” is a buzzword, and has been the subject of conspiracy theories since it was released in theaters in July. With Marta’s arrest, the film is involved in another controversy, one the cast and crew probably wish they could distance themselves from.