Sound of Freedom Lawsuit

Suzette Rasmussen (15981)
ALL UTAH LAW PLLC If you do not respond to this

Michael K. Green (13989) document within applicable time
GREEN LAW OFFICE PLLC limits, judgment could be entered
136 W. 12300 S., Ste. B against you as requested.
Draper, UT 84020
Tel.: (801) 717-0821
suzette@allutahlaw.com
mike@mikegreenlegal.com
Alan W. Mortensen (6616)

Christopher J. Cheney (15572)
MORTENSEN & MILNE
68 South Main Street, Suite 700
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Tel.: (801) 521-4444
amort@mortmilnelaw.com
ccheney@mortmilnelaw.com.com
Attorneys for Plaintiff
IN THE THIRD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT
SALT LAKE COUNTY, STATE OF UTAH
KELY JOHANA SUAREZ MOYA, an

individual; and LUZ MIRIAM MOYA
SOLANO,
COMPLAINT AND
JURY DEMAND
Plaintiffs,
(Tier 3)
v.
Civil No.:
TIMOTHY BALLARD, an individual;
KATHERINE BALLARD, an individual;
Judge:
OPERATION UNDERGROUND
RAILROAD, INC., a Utah Non-Profit
Corporation; ANGEL STUDIOS, INC. a
1
Utah Corporation; SOUND OF FREEDOM
MOVIE, LLC, a Delaware Limited Liability
Company; VAS PORTAL, LLC, a Utah
Limited Liability Company; HARMON
BROTHERS MARKETING, LLC, a Utah
Limited Liability Company; THE SPEAR
FUND, a dba for a Utah Non-Profit
Corporation; ROD BARR, an individual;
ALEJANDRO MONTEVERDE, an
individual; JANET RUSSON, an individual;
and DOES 1 through 100.
Defendants.
Both Colombia and the United States of America have constitutional provisions that
provide that a person has a presumption of innocence until proven guilty. This is a case of a young
Colombian woman who was tragically condemned by the Defendants to the entire world as being
a child trafficker without any due process or due diligence by the Defendants.
Plaintiffs, by and through their counsel, hereby complain against Defendants and allege as
follows:
PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE
1. Plaintiff Kely Johana Suarez Moya is a female adult citizen and resident of
Colombia.
2. Plaintiff Luz Miriam Moya Solano is a female adult citizen, resident of
Colombia, and the mother of Plaintiff Kely Johana Suarez Moya.
3. Defendant Timothy Ballard, aka Tim Ballard ("Ballard") is an adult citizen
and resident of the State of Utah.
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4. Defendant Katherine Ballard is an adult citizen and resident of the State of
Utah and is legally married to Ballard.
5. Defendant Operation Underground Railroad, Inc. ("OUR") is a Utah non-
profit corporation.
6. Defendant Angel Studios, Inc. ("Angel Studios") is a Utah corporation.
7. Defendant Sound of Freedom Movie, LLC ("SOFMLLC") is a Delaware
limited liability company.
8. Defendant VAS Portal, LLC ("VAS") is a Utah limited liability company.
9. Defendant Harmon Brothers Marketing, LLC ("HB") is a Utah limited
liability company.
10. Defendant The Spear Fund is a Utah non-profit corporation.
11. Defendant Rod Barr is an adult citizen and resident of the State of
California.
12. Defendant Alejandro Monteverde is an adult citizen and resident of the
Country of Mexico.
13. Defendant Janet Russon is an adult citizen and resident of the State of Utah.
14. The Third Judicial District Court in and for Salt Lake County, State of Utah,
has jurisdiction of the claims asserted below pursuant to the provisions of §78A-5-102, Utah
Code Ann. (1953 as amended).
15. Venue is properly laid before the Third Judicial District Court in and for
Salt Lake County, State of Utah, pursuant to §78B-3-307, Utah Code Ann. (1953 as amended).
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16. Removal to the Federal Court is improper in this matter given that most of
the defendants are residents or are based in the State of Utah.
17. Pursuant to Rule 26(c)(3), of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, the amount
in controversy exceeds $300,000 qualifying this claim for Tier 3 discovery.
FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS
18. Timothy Ballard is an American activist, speaker, and author.
19. Ballard portrays himself as a religious family man.
20. Ballard founded the non-profit organization Operation Underground
Railroad ("OUR") in 2013 that claims to "lead the fight against human trafficking and sexual
exploitation worldwide."
FOUNDING MYTH OF OUR
"Never let the truth get in the way of a good story. "
― Mark Twain
21. A founding myth is a narrative that explains how a particular reality came
into existence, in order to justify the established order by attributing its establishment to
sacred forces.
22. Defendant Timothy Ballard is a master at developing founding myths,
having authored The Covenant, The Lincoln Hypothesis, The Washington Hypothesis, The
Pilgrim Hypothesis, and other quasi-historical narratives that fit his world view and his
importance in it.
23. The "Founding Myth" of OUR was a sting operation conducted in
Cartagena, Colombia in 2013, entitled "Operation Triple Take."
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24. As part of this operation, Defendant OUR, through Ballard, worked with
the United States and Colombian governments to hold a pedophilia sting operation on the
Island of Baru just off the beaches of Cartagena, Colombia.
BALLARD’S FOUNDING MYTH
25. Ballard claims that El Fuego, using his vast knowledge of the sex-
trafficking cartel and the child trafficking network of Colombia being trafficked in ship
containers, put Ballard in touch with Eduardo, who was going to build a child brothel hotel on
the island of Baru.
26. Ballard claims that Eduardo put Ballard in touch with Samuel and Plaintiff
Kely, who were both known as child sex traffickers.
27. Ballard claims a meeting was held with Ballard, El Fuego, Eduardo and
Samuel to discuss having a pedophile party.
28. Ballard claims a second meeting was held at Eduardo’s home, with
Ballard, El Fuego, Eduardo, Samuel, and Plaintiff Kely.
29. Ballard claims Plaintiff Kely was a known beauty queen and sex trafficker
who runs a modeling agency that brings kids to Eduardo by going to schools and tricking
parents into handing over their kids to her so that they can be models in a phony modeling
agency. Ballard claims that Plaintiff Kely and Eduardo were in actuality grooming the
children to be sex slaves.
30. Undercover agent Elkin from the Cuerpo Técnico de Investigación
(“CTI”), which is the Colombian equivalent of the FBI, would work the streets with Ballard to
obtain the children for a price, and then offer the children to an island full of pedophiles,
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played by the Ramboesque OUR donors who bravely solicited young children for sex until the
CTI arrived and arrested the traffickers and rescued the young children.
31. Ballard claims that at this meeting, Plaintiff Kely told Ballard she had a
12-year-old virgin and could bring 40 children between the ages of 11 and 16 to the sex party,
including a 12-year-old virgin who Plaintiff Kely was going to groom for Paul Hutchinson to
have sex with at the party.
32. Ballard claims that a third meeting was held at a beach restaurant with
Ballard, El Fuego, Eduardo, Samuel, and Plaintiff Kely, where Plaintiff Kely showed Ballard
pictures of the two virgins, ages 12 and 13, that would cost $1,000 each.
33. Paul Hutchinson was the "boss" who wanted sex with a young girl.
34. Ballard claims that on October 11, 2014, two boats carrying mainly young
children under the age of 13, arrived at the Island of Baru, accompanied by Plaintiff Kely, El
Fuego, Eduardo, Samuel and others.
35. Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, who used the name "La Sombra" as a
decoy, was one of the ruse pedophile’s bodyguards.
36. Reyes proclaimed on Ballard’s podcast that Ballard infiltrated a pedophilia
cartel cell to bring up to 40 young children to the Island.
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37. Ballard claims that he wanted to see the virgins, so Eduardo went to get
them with Ballard and Ballard found them crying and scared to death.
38. Ballard then gave the traffickers, including Plaintiff Kely, cash and
immediately a jump team from the CTI moved in and arrested all of the alleged traffickers.
39. Ballard claims that the children came running up to the OUR volunteers
cheering and singing, thanking the OUR volunteers, to which someone said to Ballard, "this is
the sound of freedom."
40. The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") issued
a press-release a couple of days later, claiming the rescue of 55 sex trafficking victims, all
minors.
41. It further stated that Kelly Johana Suarez Moy was one of the traffickers
arrested and jailed. https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-colombian-authorities-rescue-55-
sex-trafficking-victims-all-minors
42. The worldwide press went crazy with the news.
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43. The Colombian newspaper La Semana’s headline proclaimed on October 14,
2014 “Kelly Johana: The queen of child sexual exploitation?”
https://www.semana.com/nacion/articulo/kelly-johana-capturada-con-red-de-prostitucion-en-
cartagena/405945-3/
44. Headlines from across the world proclaimed Plaintiff Kely’s arrest:
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45. Rolling Stone’s story said, "the mission, dubbed Operation Underground
Railroad, was the creation of former CIA and Homeland Security agent Tim Ballard, who
recruited ‘a ragtag group of volunteers’ that featured two CrossFit instructors from Utah, a
door to-door salesman, and (Laurie) Holden, who portrayed "Andrea" on The Walking Dead
for three seasons."
46. Fusion News said, "The sting was spearheaded by former CIA agent and
ex-Homeland Security investigator Tim Ballard, who organized an elaborate fake bachelor
party and requested underage prostitutes sent to a vacation house full of hidden cameras."
47. Ballard got a tremendous amount of credibility in Utah from the press.
48. LDS Living Magazine said, "Ballard’s team found tremendous success on
nearly a dozen operations last year, but the crowning achievement of Operation Underground
Railroad in 2014 occurred on October 11, when, in cooperation with the Colombian
government, they executed the largest-known human trafficking bust to date."
9
49. Glenn Beck, a leading American media personality, political
commentator, author, and Founder of The Nazarene Fund, announced, "The group recently
completed their biggest mission yet, rescuing 55 children in Colombia."
50. Utah’s Fox13 news reported, "During a recent mission in Colombia in
October, the team infiltrated a sex party, rescuing 123 child slaves and arresting 15
traffickers."
51. The Deseret News proclaimed that Sean Reyes had been involved in
rescuing sex slaves.
52. The myth of Timothy Ballard was born, and the donations to OUR came
pouring in.
FACTS
53. Reyes was put on OUR’s advisory team, whereby he would run
interference for Ballard and OUR, ignoring glaring signs of fraud and corruption in OUR, and
instead diverting investigative efforts to other non-profits, charging and incarcerating without
bail, other non-profit operators 1 who may have been doing illegal things, but which were
paltry in comparison to OUR.
1
See Indictment, attached hereto as Exhibit A.
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54. Reyes had knowledge that Ballard obtained false government
identification for himself and his COUPLES RUSE partners, and Reyes even promised to
obtain false government passports for future OPS.
55. OUR reported to the IRS $6.9 million in revenue in 2016, $22.3 million in
2019, $45 million in 2020, $52.930 million in 2021, and $56.773 million in 2022.
56. Ballard became the de-facto and most recognized face of anti-child
trafficking, which everyone agrees is a noble cause.
57. Ballard became a character of mythical proportions with unquestioned
legitimacy.
58. Ballard was appointed as a special advisor to Ivanka Trump in October
2017.
59. Ballard was invited by President Trump to join a White House anti-
trafficking advisory board.
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60. Ballard was appointed to the White House Public-Private Partnership
Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking in 2019.
61. From the beginning, with the Colombia raid, Ballard was in it to make "for
profit" documentaries and films of himself and OUR, including the creation of a movie
called, Sound of Freedom.
62. Defendant SOFLLC was formed to funnel the profits from the movie to
Tim Ballard and others.
63. Work on the script began in 2015, and it was written by Defendants Rod
Barr and Alejandro Monteverde.
64. Principal photography for Sound of Freedom began in the summer of 2018
in Cartagena, Colombia.
65. Defendant SOFMLLC is listed as the author of the movie:
66. The movie was released in the United States on The Fourth of July 2023.
67. The film claims to portray the work Tim Ballard has done, and the movie
has been hugely successful across the globe, adding to the myth of Tim Ballard.
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68. Plaintiff Kely is portrayed in Sound of Freedom by the character "Katy
Giselle", which is remarkably close to Plaintiff Kely’s first name of Kely, and the name of
Giselle is similar to the name Ghislaine of Jeffrey Epstein’s trafficking.
69. The actress who portrayed Plaintiff Kely in Sound of Freedom is Yessica
Borroto, who looks similar to the way the Plaintiff Kely looked in 2014.
70. Angel Studios explains on its webpage that the movie is based on the true
story of Tim Ballard. who journeys to rescue a girl from child traffickers.
71. Angel Studios explains on its webpage that the character Giselle
represents the real-life Plaintiff Kely.
72. The movie portrays Giselle as a wealthy, socialite beauty-queen who has a
child modeling agency in Cartagena, where she traffics her models to the cartel.
73. Giselle travels from Cartagena to Tegucigalpa, Honduras, to recruit kids to
work for her modeling agency, and then she kidnaps them and takes them back to Colombia
as sex slaves, trapped in a shipping container.
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74. The movie also shows Plaintiff Kely bringing these young children (12
years old and younger) to this remote island where the children look and act as sex slaves.
75. In the movie, Tim Ballard hands Plaintiff Kely some money and then the
CTI jump out and arrest her and the others. Plaintiff Kely (apparently in anticipation of this
lawsuit), yells that she is a victim.
76. In real life, Plaintiff Kely spent the next 18 months at the Women’s Prison
in Cartagena while she awaited trial.
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77. She was finally released by habeas corpus pending trial. 2
78. Tim Ballard returned to Cartagena to testify about Plaintiff Kely’s alleged
trafficking activities in order to have Plaintiff Kely convicted.
79. He blasted his heroic return over social media, being photographed with a
bodyguard and wearing a bullet proof vest to portray himself as needing protection from
snipers.
80. As of November 30, 2023, Sound of Freedom has grossed $184.2 million
in the United States and Canada, and $66.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of
$250.3 million.
2
See Habeas Corpus, attached as Exhibit B.
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81. It is the ninth highest-grossing film of 2023 in the United States and
Canada.
82. By late-August 2023, it was considered "one of history's most successful
independent films."
REALITY
An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does truth
become error because nobody sees it.
Mahatma Gandhi
83. Plaintiff Kely was born in a very small Colombian town called Fonseca-
Guajira.
84. Plaintiff Kely was raised by a single mother, the Plaintiff Luz, in a very
humble neighborhood of La Esperanza, in the sector of Obrero in Cartagena, Colombia.
85. Plaintiff Kely saw the difficulties her mother and neighbors faced due to
poverty and lack of opportunities, so she went to the University to obtain a degree in social
work in order to help people.
86. Because of Plaintiff Kely’s desire to give back to her neighborhood, when
she was 19-years-old, she was nominated into what is essentially a popularity contest in
Cartagena called "The Independence Queen", where she represented her Obrero neighborhood
as they honored Colombia’s independence from Spain, something akin to being nominated to
be a Girls State representative in Utah.
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87. This was not a beauty contest, but rather a competition to be the named
ambassador of one’s neighborhood.
88. Plaintiff Kely did not win the contest.
89. Plaintiff Kely never ran a child-modeling agency.
90. Plaintiff Kely did not have the funds or the where-with-all to recruit
children from her neighborhood, let alone traffic them from Honduras in shipping crates.
91. Prior to being invited to the island party and getting arrested, Plaintiff
Kely was not well-known to anyone in Cartagena, outside of her close family and friends.
92. Prior to being invited to the island party and getting arrested, Plaintiff
Kely had never been involved in trafficking of children or adults.
TIM BALLARD CREATING THE DEMAND
"Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers."
~ Seth Godin
93. In 2012, two filmmakers heard a radio interview between Glenn Beck and
Timothy Blain Ballard whereby Ballard was peddling one of his alternative history books.
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94. The filmmakers were looking for an American History consultant for a
project they were working on and called Beck’s show to be put in contact with Ballard.
95. Ballard agreed to meet with the film makers.
96. Ballard immediately began to tell the film makers stories about his work
with the CIA and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) as an "undercover agent".
97. Filmmakers were impressed by Ballard’s compelling tales and told him
that they would be interested in making a documentary about his important undercover work.
98. Ballard agreed but insisted that he become a full partner in the production
of the film, stating, "It would kill me to see you guys [the two filmmakers] up there accepting
awards and me not get one."
99. With an outline for a film and tv series, "Operation Underground
Railroad" was born.
100. The Film makers began filming everything that Ballard did, believing that
Ballard was an expert because of his CIA and HSI experience as an undercover agent helping
rescue trafficked children.
101. The idea for a series and documentary, The Abolitionists, was hatched, and
Ballard planned operations ("OPS") in order to collect video footage that could be edited into
a money-making documentary and series.
102. Ballard founded the non-profit organization Operation Underground
Railroad ("OUR") in 2013 that claims to "lead the fight against human trafficking and sexual
exploitation worldwide."
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103. In line with this desire to be the hero in movies and become rich and
famous, on July 28, 2014, Ballard began setting up his OP.
104. Ballard went walking on the Playa Blanca beach when he was approached
by a beach vendor named Fuego (Juan Manuel Okendo Sierra), who is listed in court
documents as a tourist guide, known locally as a clown and buffoon, working hand-to-mouth
on a daily basis selling whatever a customer wants.
105. Fuego asked Ballard if he wanted something to drink, smoke, or if he
wanted some cocaine or marijuana.
106. Ballard asked Fuego if he could provide women for him to have sex with.
107. Fuego said that he knew where he could.
108. Prostitution is legal in Colombia, though pimping is illegal.
109. Ballard then asked if Fuego could get young children for sex.
110. There was no pedophile sex trade in Cartagena that Fuego knew of, but he
wanted to make money.
111. Ballard then told Fuego he wanted to have a large party where he would
bring in a lot of wealthy pedophiles, and that he needed a lot of young children for this to
happen.
112. Fuego said he would talk to some of his friends to see what he could do to
arrange such.
113. Ballard and Fuego agreed to remain in contact to set up this pedophile
party.
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114. Ballard went to Agent Elkin Arnulfo Peña Bernal ("Elkin") of CTI and
informed him that he had a contact with traffickers who could obtain several young children
for a pedophile party and bust.
115. It was agreed that a sting operation would be held.
116. Ballard agreed to provide ruse pedophiles, who were wealthy volunteers
and donors (mainly from the State of Utah), through his non-profit Operation Underground
Railroad.
117. Ballard also agreed to provide Paul Hutchinson as the "pedophile boss"
who wanted young looking black girls to have anal sex with.
118. CTI agreed to provide the law enforcement.
119. Ballard and Hutchinson were deputized as undercover agents.
120. Ballard and Hutchinson signed contracts to be deputized undercover
agents that included an anti-entrapment clause:
IN NO EVENT MAY THE COVERT AGENT PROVOK OR

INDUCE THE INDICTED, CHARGED OR INVESTIGATED
OR ANY MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZED CRIMINAL
GROUP OR A THIRD PARTY OUTSIDE THE
ORGANIZATION TO COMMIT PUNISHABLE CONDUCT,
FOR WHICH THEY WAS NOT PREDISPOSED.
It may not violate legal standards superior to those of the

criminal conduct under investigation.
Do not attack the life and integrity of people. 3
3
See “ACTA DE VOLUNTARIEDAD PARA ACTUACION DE AGENTE ENCUBIERTO,
attached hereto as Exhibit C.
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121. Fuego contacted a friend by the name of Eduardo Ortega Issa ("Eduardo")
for assistance on how to round up underage children for the sex party, given that there was no
known cartel or trafficking ring involved in trafficking underage children for sex.
122. On October 7, 2014, a meeting was held between Ballard, Elkin, and
Eduardo where they agreed that Ballard would pay between $250 to $300 per child provided
at the pedophile party.
123. Ballard also gave Eduardo money to make arrangements for the party.
124. It was decided that a social media invitation would go out on Facebook
inviting young people to the party.
125. Plaintiff Kely was nowhere near this meeting and had no way of knowing
that it was occurring.
126. Court records verify that Plaintiff Kely was not at this meeting.
127. On October 9, 2014, Eduardo called Elkin and told him that he could
provide more children than previously agreed and he could lower the price of each child.
128. A meeting was held that same day where Ballard, Elkin, and Eduardo
were present, along with a recently turned 18-year-old gay young man by the name of Samuel
David Olave Martinez ("Samuel"), Luis Miguel Mosquera Cuesta ("Luis") and a young
woman by the name of Natalie Taborda Atencio ("Naty").
129. Naty claimed that she could obtain about 15 children mainly from
Cartagena’s high schools, guaranteeing that the oldest child would be 16 years old.
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130. Samuel said he could obtain 26 female children and 6 male children, given
that he worked in a modeling school, (which is where he met Plaintiff Kely). Samuel thought
he could recruit children from the school.
131. Plaintiff Kely was nowhere near this meeting and had no way of knowing
that it was occurring, nor did she have knowledge of the theme of the meeting or what was
discussed.
132. Court records verify that Plaintiff Kely was not at this meeting.
133. On October 10, 2014, Eduardo called Elkin and confirmed that he had
accumulated commitments for 28 young girls and 3 boys under the age of 10 years old.
134. He also confirmed that Samuel had accumulated 26 young girls and 8
young boys.
135. No where in this phone call was Plaintiff Kely mentioned.
136. Unfortunately for Plaintiff Kely, Samuel was an acquaintance of hers from
some joint modeling work they had done together previously.
137. Samuel told Plaintiff Kely that a rich North American (Hutchinson aka
Pablo) was coming to the party looking for a young looking black girl to have sex with, and
that she would be paid for attending.
138. At the time, Plaintiff Kely was twenty years old, but she looked under the
age of 15 and she is black, so Samuel believed that she would be good bait for Hutchinson and
invited her to the party as one of the young girls he had committed to provide to Hutchinson.
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139. Given Plaintiff Kely’s poverty, Plaintiff Kely decided to go to the party to
try and become the "novia" of Paul Hutchinson, as it would give her and her mother a way out
of their poverty if she had a rich North American boyfriend.
140. At a bare minimum, Plaintiff Kely would be paid to attend the party.
141. Samuel asked Plaintiff Kely to come to a meeting at Eduardo’s apartment,
whereby Plaintiff Kely and Samuel’s niece were present so that Tim Ballard could verify that
Samuel and Eduardo had young girls ready for Paul Hutchinson ("Pablo").
142. Plaintiff Kely and Samuel’s niece were the only two "alleged" young girls
at that meeting, again as bait, though Ballard claims on The Abolitionists that there were other
children.
143. Plaintiff Kely also saw the party invitation on Facebook.
144. Another meeting was held between Ballard, Eduardo, Samuel, and
Plaintiff Kely at a restaurant on the beach to make last-minute arrangements for the party.
145. Plaintiff Kely attended this meeting at the urging of Samuel to show that
they had a young black girl arranged to have sex with Pablo.
146. Ballard began emphasizing that Pablo wanted to have anal sex with a
young black girl.
147. At that point in time, Plaintiff Kely spoke up and asked that Pablo be
delicate with her as she did not want to be violently raped by Pablo.
148. On October 11, 2014, Plaintiff Kely got on the small boat with other
young adults, ages 13-30, who had also accepted the invitations to go to this party.
149. Some of the young adults even paid $5 for the boat ride.
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150. None of the young adults on the boat were trafficked in any way (other
than by Ballard) and they were all there for the same party, including those who had paid the
modest sum of $5 to attend.
151. None of these young adults were ever kept in shipping containers or
trafficked (except on the boat to the island) for sex.
152. In fact, court documents demonstrate that none of the young adults were
trafficked or were sex slaves. 4
153. All were either invited by social media or by invitation of Samuel (as in
the case of the Plaintiff Kely), Naty, or Fuego.
154. Court documents and interviews verify that Plaintiff Kely invited no one
to the party.
155. Court documents demonstrate that one of the young men who was at the
OP, Pedro Florez Ramos, ("Pedro") age 17 years old, who is gay and lived at home with his
parents Oscar Florez y Alejandra Ramos in Cartagena, Colombia, learned of the party on
Facebook. 5
156. Court documents show, and Pedro confirms, that he was never previously
trafficked 6 and had previously only had sexual relations with his boyfriend, who according to
court documents, accompanied him on this trip to the island, though he denies that now.
157. Before the party on October 11, 2014, Pedro did not know Kely Suárez,
neither privately nor publicly, as some supposed beauty queen from Cartagena.
4
See Registry of Children at the Party, attached hereto as Exhibit D.
5
See Pedro Florez Ramos Interview, attached hereto as Exhibit E.
6
See Declaration of Pedro Florez Ramos, attached hereto as Exhibit F.
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158. At no time did Kely Suarez invite Pedro to the party or promise him
money.
159. Before October 11, 2014, Pedro had never been sexually trafficked.
160. The only people who gave Pedro money for sex were the North Americans
from OUR.
161. Court documents demonstrate the ages of the young adults who
voluntarily showed up for the promised party on the island of Baru.
162. 30 of the young adults were adults, with the oldest being 30.
163. 16 of the young adults were the age of 17.
166. 1 of the young adults was the age of 14.
167. 1 of the young adults was the age of 13. 7
168. Court documents demonstrate that Naty did not show up for the boat trip
to the island for the sex party, although she had agreed in the earlier meetings to come.
169. Upon arrival at the island, Plaintiff Kely saw Samuel sitting at a table with
Ballard.
170. As she knew Samuel, she sat down at a table next to Samuel.
171. As the prosecutor in the Colombian case acknowledges in her questioning
of Ballard, Ballard only pushed money to Eduardo and Samuel.
7
See Exhibit D.
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172. Ballard kept wanting to insist at trial in Colombia, that he pushed the
money to El Fuego, Samuel, Eduardo and Plaintiff Kely.
173. The CTI immediately dropped in and arrested Plaintiff Kely and the
others.
174. The young adults and teenagers who were brought to the island were very
confused and traumatized by these events, as was Plaintiff Kely.
175. In reality, none of the young adults that were taken to the party had been
previously trafficked, and none of the "clients" were actually pedophiles looking for sex.
176. Plaintiff Kely had been confused for "Naty", as Plaintiff Kely had no
involvement in planning the party, obtaining the young adults, and was not aware of the false
pretense of the party until she was arrested.
177. The true details of the OP did not deter Tim Ballard and OUR from
proceeding with their fraud, as they had several cameras filming everything at the "sting" so
that they had video for the "sizzle 8."
178. By the time that the news hit the press, Plaintiff Kely was being presented
by Tim Ballard as Ms. Cartagena, the Beauty Pageant Queen who traded her fame to traffic
children, by essentially mixing the life stories of Naty and Samuel into a fraudulent narrative
about the Plaintiff Kely.
179. Plaintiff Kely went from being an anonymous face in the crowd, to being
hated in Colombia.
8
Sizzle reels are short promotional videos also known as demo reels, highlight reels, show reels,
promo videos, pitch tapes, or teasers.
26
.
27
28
she
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180. Plaintiff Kely was very scared and confused as to what had just happened
to her.
181. Her concerns were not unwarranted, as she spent the next 18 months in
prison awaiting trial.
182. The man who claims to rescue kids from cages, placed a kid into a cage
for 18 months, for his own fame and stardom.
183. CTI undercover agent Elkin has since been convicted of corruption and
abuse of public office for taking bribes, and he is a fugitive with a warrant out for his
incarceration for 129 months. 9
184. While Plaintiff Kely was in prison in 2015, Defendants Rod Barr and
Alejandro Monteverde (and Defendant SOFMLLC) were writing the script for the movie
Sound of Freedom.
185. Had Defendants Rod Barr and/or Alejandro Monteverde fact checked the
Court records, they would have been aware that Plaintiff Kely was not at three of the meetings
where Operation Triple Take was planned, was clearly confused for Naty, and went to the
island party as a fraudulently induced trafficked person.
186. Had Defendants Rod Barr and/or Alejandro Monteverde fact checked the
Court records, they would have been aware that Plaintiff Kely was not a mover and shaker in
Cartagena and that she had no access to children.
9
See Conviction, attached hereto as Exhibit G.
30
187. Had Defendants fact checked Tim Ballard, they would have been aware
that several media reports demonstrate that he made his false reputation upon "entrapment"
in third world countries.
188. For example, HuffPost.com reported that:
Courts in the U.S. and many other countries would have a hard
time making that distinction and in most jurisdictions such actions
could constitute a defense to criminal liability. Stackpole also fails
to explore the ethical and legal minefield of OUR live-streaming
their operations to benefactors overseas. From the perspective of a
victim's right to privacy, such actions are reprehensible.
And from a criminal justice perspective, there are even more
pressing concerns about the OUR approach. First, the entire
premise of its operations: that local law enforcement will take over
when the dirty work has been done is dangerously naïve. Why are
police in Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Colombia not
arresting child sex traffickers if they are so easy to find? The
simplest explanation is law enforcement complicity in such crimes.
Agreeing to cooperate with OUR is a win-win: local cops get to
keep an eye on what's happening and ensure OUR doesn't stray
into their turf; they also gain international kudos for taking on the
traffickers.
Foreign Policy's analysis fails to ask the most basic question of all:
we know that child trafficking is a huge problem in the United
States. Why is OUR not operating here? For that matter, why are
they not raiding the brothels of Amsterdam or London? The simple
reason is that, lacking any legal capacity to undertake such
operations, Ballard and his rag-tag team would be arrested on the
spot. And any court in any of these jurisdictions would not hesitate
to throw out a case that rests on the evidence of an OUR-type raid
because of the failure to meet even the most basic standards of
supervision and accountability. It's no surprise that the
organization and its fellow travelers limit their activities to
countries burdened by dysfunctional criminal justice systems that
for their own reasons —or perhaps in response to pressure from the
U.S. government —agree to cooperate.”
189. After 18 months in the Colombian San Diego Women’s Prison, Plaintiff
Kely was released pending trial via habeas corpus.
31
190. Ballard claims in one of his movie scripts that it was because of corrupt
judges in Colombia that she was released after 18 months. 10
11
191. Plaintiff Kely was hated by the people of Cartagena.
192. Plaintiff Kely received death threats and was spit at by people.
193. Plaintiff Kely’s normal life was destroyed.
10
See Movie Script, attached hereto as Exhibit H.
11
Plaintiff standing outside the prison in 2024.
32
194. Plaintiff Kely decided that she would help others who had been
wrongfully accused, so she went to law school, recently graduating.
195. After some time (approximately 2016), people quit staring at Plaintiff
Kely and talking about her, and she was ready to put this horrible experience behind her.
196. However, Defendant SOFMLLC had other ideas.
197. Defendant SOFMLLC was being formed to make this Cartagena "rescue"
into a movie.
198. In 2018, the movie was filmed in Colombia and Mexico by Defendant
SOFMLLC.
199. Paul Hutchinson funded and produced much of the movie, and as such,
named the rescued girl after his wife, Rocio.
200. Matt Osborne, OUR’s number two man, was given a role in the movie.
33
201. The little boy that the cartel lawyer wanted to rape in the movie was given
the name "Simba."
202. After criticisms came about that no one was actually rescued, it was
decided that that the character Simba would be based upon Pedro.
203. Pedro decided he would adopt that history as his own because he was
offered money and trips by Ballard and OUR. Pedro recognized that he could fleece OUR and
Angel Studios for at least $2,100 a month for his non-existent after care non-profit entity in
Cartagena that he called "Tejiendo Suenos."
204. A distribution deal was made with the Latin American subsidiary of 20th
Century Fox.
205. When the studio was purchased by the Walt Disney Company, Disney
shelved the film.
206. Subsequently, SOFMLLC bought the distribution rights back from
Disney.
34
207. However, Ballard’s years of lies, deceit, and sexual deviancy were finally
catching up with him.
208. Ballard authored a book proposal entitled Rescued From Darkness, A
Personal Odyssey from a Life Battling Human Trafficking. 12
209. In his book proposal, he revealed that in "addition to the crushing
responsibilities of fighting an ongoing war against human trafficking," in 2020 he believed he
became the target of a corporate coup attempt within OUR targeting Ballard personally,
through the investigation of Ballard and OUR from the Davis County Attorney’s Office.
210. Ballard placed his Uncle Craig Anderson, of C.H. Anderson Construction,
as the head of OUR’s Board of Directors in order to quash a corporate coup Ballard believed
to have occurred within OUR, and to restructure OUR so that Ballard could continue going on
foreign OPS.
211. When Ballard found out about the Davis County Investigation, he
collapsed onto an asphalt parking lot in Miami, Florida, where he was rescued by Tony
Robbins and his wife Sage.
212. Ballard was jealous of OUR’s non-profit financial success, and he wanted
to grow his own brand so he could capitalize monetarily from his work, more than the salary
he was drawing from OUR.
213. It was Ballard’s belief that he was convinced by traitors to step away from
OUR to focus on making money, when in reality it was part of the corporate coup to rid OUR
of Ballard.
12
Attached hereto as Exhibit I.
35
214. The book proposal also reaffirmed Ballard’s view that OUR had fallen
into a state of unprofessionalism and incompetence that only Ballard could repair, through the
help of his Uncle Craig.
215. Ballard revealed his addictions to Xanax and Ambien and that he had
intensive intervention to address those addictions.
216. Ballard became aware that one of the filmmakers of The Abolitionists, was
working in Haiti in what Ballard viewed was in direct competition with OUR, so Ballard
asked that local officials arrest the filmmaker. 13
217. The donating public finally became aware that in order to purportedly find
and save trafficked children, Ballard would receive psychic information from psychic Janet
Russon about where the OPS should occur, along with reassurance and justification of
everything Ballard did, while predicting the future situations the operatives would be in, so
that they could plan the next OP.
218. Ms. Russon claims that she spoke to a dead prophet named Nephi, who
directed her about where to locate the trafficked children.
219. Ballard used OUR and its OPS to fund his personal fantasies of grandeur,
much as he did the movie Sound of Freedom.
220. Ballard began a program for women accompanying him on OPS and called
the program "THE COUPLES RUSE."
13
See Text Messages, attached hereto as Exhibit J.
36
221. Ballard claims that the COUPLES RUSE was an undercover tool to
prevent detection by pedophiles when Ballard would not engage in sexual touching of the
trafficked women offered up to him in strip clubs and massage parlors across the world.
222. Ballard would choose a woman who worked at OUR or with OUR, or
would invite a well-intentioned volunteer, to be trained in the COUPLES RUSE.
223. The women he chose had no formal training in paramilitary activities or
operations, but he knew they were devoted to the OUR mission of saving women and children
from traffickers.
224. Ballard claims that he implemented strict rules regarding the COUPLES
RUSE: no kissing on the lips and no touching or exposing private parts.
225. Ballard soon began abusing the COUPLES RUSE and eventually used the
ruse as a tool for sexual grooming.
226. As part of either an OP or practice for the OP, Ballard would often share a
bed with a woman posing as his girlfriend or invite her to shower in his bathroom, even
though accommodations at designated "safe houses" provided separate bedrooms and
bathrooms.
227. Before they ever went undercover together, Ballard insisted that he first
needed to ensure that he and his female counterparts in the COUPLES RUSE had physical
"chemistry" that would be obvious to those they would meet during an operation.
228. Ballard encouraged female operatives to participate in tantric massages
before and while on a COUPLES RUSE.
37
229. Ballard claimed to be so concerned about the believability of the
COUPLES RUSE that he frequently asked women to "practice" their COUPLES RUSE long
before a mission ever took place.
230. To that end, Ballard flew women across the country, where they would
"practice" their sexual chemistry through tantric yoga, couples' massages with escorts, and lap
dancing on Ballard’s lap.
231. Ballard also frequented strip clubs in the Salt Lake Valley with these
women to practice the COUPLES RUSE.
232. Ballard included his son, who had just returned from serving a mission for
the Mormon Church, to the strip clubs, without Ballard’s wife’s knowledge.
233. At the strip clubs, Ballard would pay for and receive lap dances, and
ingest alcohol and pills at these practice "Ruse Ruses" on OUR’s dime with donor monies.
234. Ballard engaged in a ploy where he would tell the women that if they were
offered alcohol, which is forbidden by the Mormon Church, that she should take the drink and
then open mouth, kiss him and spit the alcohol into his mouth, and then he would spit it out
when the traffickers were not looking.
235. However, Ballard was doing the exact opposite–he was consuming
excessive amounts of alcohol (tequila) of his own volition, which he drank at strip clubs,
massage parlors, and on trips, to the point of passing out.
236. Through these COUPLES RUSES, both in the office and in the field,
Ballard eventually engaged in coerced sexual contact with several women and propositioned
others.
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237. Ballard participated in several sexual acts, in various states of undress,
while on an OPS mission.
238. Ballard developed a sexual position where it appeared he was having full
on sexual intercourse with his COUPLES RUSE victims, while not actually penetrating.
239. While inside private accommodations, when no one else was around that
they needed to fool, Ballard would claim that he and his female partner had to maintain the
appearance of a romantic relationship at all times in case suspicious traffickers might be
surveilling them at any moment.
240. Ballard requested the women he invited to act as his significant other, to
first have a Brazilian wax.
241. Ballard would ask each woman, "Is there anything you wouldn't do to save
a child?"
242. To further convince the women of his need for them on the next OPS
mission, Ballard would badmouth previous female partners, claiming that the women who had
allegedly gone on COUPLES RUSES in the past were "crazy," and claiming that they had
fallen in love with him along the way.
243. Ballard used these mythical stories to motivate the women in his
COUPLES RUSE to prove their mettle and their devotion to the cause by trying to outdo their
supposed predecessors.
244. When these women found themselves questioning the legitimacy of tactics
involving sexual contact, they often doubted their own instincts, relying on Ballard's breadth
of knowledge about rescue missions to convince themselves that such tactics were normal.
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245. Other employees of OUR would warn these women not to question Ballard
or their lives would be put in danger.
246. Ballard would also tell the women that engaging in sex play with him
would improve their marriage, even as he also told them not to tell their husbands about what
they were doing (or it would compromise the mission, children, their lives, and other
informants’ lives).
247. Ballard would repeatedly warn these women that if they failed in their
COUPLES RUSE mission, they would have wasted the hard-earned money that honest donor
had entrusted to OUR or be caught or killed by the cartel.
248. Ballard would also tell these women that Janet Russon and/or Ballard’s
wife Katherine had chosen them to be part of the COUPLES RUSE.
249. Ballard would use spiritual manipulation to coerce them into sexual
contact.
250. Almost all of the women involved are or were Mormon.
251. Many were sexually assaulted by Ballard.
252. Ballard began to claim that President M. Russell Ballard of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, had given Ballard permission to do the COUPLES RUSE as
long as there was no sexual intercourse or kissing on the lips, and had given him a special
priesthood blessing as such.
253. Ballard would also claim that a passage from the Book of Mormon, in
which a man kills another man on the promptings of the Holy Spirit, demonstrates that
sometimes the Holy Spirit asks people to perform "unconventional" tasks.
40
254. Ballard would also claim to the women that Defendant Janet Russon told
him that he had been married to them in a previous life, and so their conduct was appropriate.
255. Additionally, Ballard would get ketamine treatments and have a scribe
come in with him while he would talk to the dead prophet Nephi and issue forth prophecies
about Ballard’s greatness and future as a United States Senator, President of the United States,
and ultimately the Mormon Prophet, to usher in the second coming of Jesus Christ.
256. Ballard would also claim to his female Ruse partners that if his wife
Katherine were to die, he would immediately marry them.
257. Ballard told one of his victims that when his wife would question what
Ballard was doing with these women, Ballard would tell his wife that his female partners kept
falling in love with him and wanted to kill Katherine so that they could be together.
258. Ballard would insist that the women stay silent about their alleged sexual
encounters with him because if they told anyone, it would put everyone’s lives at risk on the
OPS mission, it was necessary to save the trafficked children, and because he was blessed by
President Ballard to be a future President of the United States and then the Prophet of the
Mormon Church.
259. After the women were coerced into engaging in sexual activity with
Ballard, he used their encounters to his advantage, sending texts to some of the women that
would say something to the effect of "We will have so much s*** on each other we will be
deterred into silence on all things forever."
41
260. Ballard gave the women burner phones to use and had them use Signal, a
messaging app that keeps communication private, and he frequently demanded that the
women erase the digital traces of his conversations with them each night.
261. Ballard also threatened the women that he was tracking them with their
burner phones and company phones he provided.
262. Additionally, he required the women he asked to go on OPS as part of the
COUPLES RUSE to sign Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA), claiming it was required to
protect the safety of the children and the participants.
263. Ballard would then threaten to sue the women if they ever disclosed
anything about his tactics, practice OPS, or the COUPLES RUSE.
264. At least two marriages have broken up as a result of Tim Ballard’s actions
with these women.
265. Ballard offered to pay for the divorce attorney of one of his victims, and
he had a henchman call and threaten her husband on voice message, resulting in the police
being called and a report being filed.
266. In 2023, Defendant Angel Studios had acquired the worldwide distribution
rights, with a planned release during the second half of 2023.
267. There was one small problem that Defendants did not take into account
though– Plaintiff Kely had never been convicted of any crime, despite the fact that they were
portraying her as a villain and child sex trafficking monster.
42
268. As such, Ballard and Matt Osborne went to Cartagena to testify in
February 2023, as both were financially motivated to make sure Plaintiff Kely was convicted
before Sound of Freedom was released.
269. Ballard never revealed to the Court in Colombia his financial interests in
the movies, books and podcasts he has made and profited from this raid, nor did he reveal to
the CTI before going undercover that he was making a for profit movie which could impair
his impartiality and move from being bate to being the entrapper.
270. In fact, Ballard had hundreds of hours of raw footage that he had made for
his for-profit documentaries, movies and books, that he never turned over to the Colombian
legal authorities.
271. It is believed that Ballard has earned eight figures from his entrapment of
the Plaintiff Kely and placing her into prison for 18 months, and traumatizing over 50 minors
and young adults through the “sting” and sex abuse interviews alone, without their parents,
after dark, on a remote island in the Atlantic Ocean.
43
272. Ballard became friends with Tony Robbins, an American author, coach,
and speaker, who raised staggering amounts of money for Ballard.
273. Ballard became friends with real-estate magnates, such as Tavaci, Scott
Keller of Keller Investment Properties, Paul Hutchinson, M. Brett Jensen, Ballard’s uncle
Craig Anderson of C.H. Anderson Construction, Brad Damon, Eric Robinson, Jeffrey Frazier,
Sean Wolfington, Simon Brewer, Brad Brower, Scott Gordon, Britnie Turner, David Jacobs,
Mark Stott, Douglas Free, Todd Tueller, Bryson Paxton, Jonathan Marquis, John Nemelka,
Chris Smith, Kenneth Kroger, David Barton, Jonathan Dodd, Al Jackson, Mel Gibson, Vess
Pearson, Radd Berrett, David Lopez, and several others.
274. Ballard’s non-profit OUR began to make "partnerships" with other non-
profits and for profit NGO’s across the world, whereby staggering amounts of money would
go back and forth, including, but not limited to Utah Attorney General Reye’s LAVA fund,
The Worldwide Holdings Investment Group, Good360, The Spear Fund, The Draper
Philharmonic Choir, The Nazarene Fund, Aerial Recovery, Free A Girl, The Hand 2 Hand
44
Foundation, The American Venture Resource Association and its affiliated AVRA Financial
Inc., the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, Fenton, Nu Skin, ATAC, Legacy Food Company,
Global Empowerment Mission, New Horizons Ministry, America First Policy Institute, and
This Mission, amongst others.
275. Had Defendant Angel Studios fact checked the Court records (or fact
checked Ballard himself and his profit motives), it would have been aware that: (1) Plaintiff
Kely had been confused for Naty; (2) Plaintiff Kely went to the island party as a fraudulently-
induced trafficked person; (3) Plaintiff Kely was not at the three meetings where the sting was
planned; (4) that her portrayal in Sound of Freedom was defamatory and slanderous; and and
(4) the marketing of Sound of Freedom was defamatory and slanderous to Plaintiff Kely.
276. Had Defendant Angel Studios fact checked the Court records, it would
have been aware that Plaintiff Kely was not a mover and shaker in Cartagena, that she had no
access to children, and that her portrayal in Sound of Freedom was defamatory and
slanderous.
have been aware that Plaintiff Kely, despite Ballard’s best efforts otherwise, has never been
convicted of any crime.
have been aware that OUR had been sued and paid a settlement in Washington State, for the
entrapment of a man in Operation Net Nanny. 14
14
See Complaint, attached hereto as Exhibit K.
45
279. Additionally, OUR was aware of Ballard’s unlawful tactics when its
General Counsel sent a scathing reprimand of Ballard based upon entrapment issues on one
of his OPS, which Ballard rejected out-of-hand.
280. In May of 2023, Sound of Freedom received a release date of July 4, 2023.
281. People in the movie industry who knew Ballard came forward to
Defendant Angel Studios urging them to be very careful in dealing with Ballard, as he was
already a known fraud to many.
46
47
282. In the Spring of 2023, at about the same time as the release of Sound of
Freedom, a female employee of OUR who had been on these Couple Ruse OPS or practices,
came forward to OUR management.
283. The texts between Ballard and this woman showed that Ballard was a two-
faced liar who was engaging in an adulterous grooming relationship. 15
284. OUR had its own law firm, Holland & Hart, conduct an "external"
investigation, which investigation verified the victims’ claims.
285. OUR was set to terminate Tim Ballard.
286. The Nazarene Fund also terminated Ballard.
15
See Texts, attached hereto as Exhibit L.
48
287. Furthermore, in a twist of horrible irony, Paul Hutchinson’s wife, Rocio,
was charged with being a pedophile and is required to wear an ankle monitor. 16
288. The timing could not have been worse for Angel Studios, as it had gotten
thousands of investors into Sound of Freedom.
289. OUR was afraid of litigation with Angel Studios, and OUR expected to
raise money from Sound of Freedom.
290. A joint plan was hatched whereby Ballard would resign, ostensibly
because of the appearance of a conflict of interest with the release of Sound of Freedom, and
he would take a very lucrative severance agreement and remain the face of OUR so it could
continue to raise money.
291. As part of the plan, everyone was required to sign a NDA.
292. With his image intact, Ballard moved to The SPEAR Fund, where he is
able to continue raising money from well-intentioned people wanting to end human
trafficking.
293. Defendant Angel Studios was aware of these allegations against Tim
Ballard for fraud, deceit, and sexual assault on multiple women, but it did not halt the release
of the movie Sound of Freedom in order to determine whether Tim Ballard was who he
claimed to be.
16
See Charging Documents, attached hereto as Exhibit M.
49
294. Defendant Angel Studios did not adequately perform a fact check (if any
were done at all) about how it portrayed Plaintiff Kely in the movie, or about how inaccurate
the movie promotional materials were about the Plaintiff Kely.
295. Instead, Defendant Angel Studios doubled down on using Tim Ballard’s
image as a "HERO", going forward with the premier of Sound of Freedom.
296. Angel Studios also doubled down on Plaintiff Kely’s image, again painting
her as a monster child trafficker, rather than one who had been trafficked by Tim Ballard for
his personal gain and fame.
297. OUR also doubled down on the Plaintiff Kely, calling her "nothing short of a
monster", in hopes that people who went to see Sound of Freedom would increase its donations to
OUR:
50
51
298. Rather than tell the donors that Tim Ballard was a sexual predator, OUR
remained silent, using his face and the worldwide opening tour of Sound of Freedom to raise
money, and allowing Ballard to continue his grooming, drinking, and sexual deviancy; all on
the donors’ dime.
299. Rather than turn Ballard into the police for his criminal conduct, OUR paid
Ballard $618,000 and gave him a Jeep Grand Cherokee to resign from OUR.
52
300. Rather than stop the distribution of the movie Sound of Freedom, as it
glorifies a sex abuser and a fraud and destroys an innocent bystander in the Plaintiff Kely, Angel
Studios instead confirmed that Sound of Freedom would be released in 23 international markets
throughout 2023.
301. Angel Films started promoting the red-carpet premier of Sonida de Libertad
(Sound of Freedom) on August 12, 2023, at the Cinepolis Plaza Claro in the Ciudad Salitre
Occidental, near Bogota.
302. The film was released in UAE on August 17, in South Africa, Iceland and
Lithuania on August 18 and Australia and New Zealand on August 24.
303. Other countries where the film was shown include Mexico, Guatemala,
Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Belize, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina, Uruguay,
Paraguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and
Serbia on August 31.
304. In order to make the movie "believable", Ballard and Angel Studios flew
Pedro across South America, promoting him as a "survivor" of the Island Raid.
305. On September 15, 2023, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
publicly denounced Ballard for his immoral behavior.
306. Defendant Ballard, in an attempt to save his quickly deflating reputation,
obtained a letter from his Bishop of his congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
Day Saints to show to the press and the Catholic Speakers Organization, that he was in good
standing with the Church.
53
307. The Bishop later revoked the letter.
54
308. Mark Stott, the former CEO of OUR and former Bishop of Ballard,
attempted to intervene on Ballard’s behalf by going above the Bishop’s head.
309. However, Ballard was excommunicated by The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-Day Saints shortly thereafter.
310. This did not deter Angel Studios, as it raked in millions from Sound of
Freedom, a movie that focuses on an alleged sex abuser, adulterer, drunk, drug addicted, faux
child rescuer who had been excommunicated from the very community Angel Studios panders
to for donations and investors.
311. The film was released in the Philippines on September 20, as well as in the
United Kingdom and Ireland and in Spain on October 11, 2023
55
312. On that same day, The Spear Fund, Ballard, and his wife Katherine Ballard,
issued a public statement, again calling Plaintiff Kely "an evil and conspiring" trafficker.
313. What started out as a way to filter "bosoms, blood and bad words" movies
and shows, had devolved into Angel Studios paying for Tim Ballard to attend the premieres of
the movie across the world, where he hobnobbed with the uneducated rich and famous and had
press conferences where he could further spread his origin myth.
314. The most devastating of these premiers to Plaintiff Kely was in Colombia.
56
315. Billboards and posters showed Plaintiff Kely, aka "The Queen of
Cartagena", alongside the actress that played her in the movie.
316. Plaintiff Kely’s life was again turned upside down as people began calling
her names, sending her hate mail, and shunning her.
317. Plaintiff Kely has been extremely traumatized by the additional new,
negative publicity, which has led her to attend psychotherapy.
318. Plaintiff Kely is afraid to go out in public, and her reputation has again been
ruined by the untruths and frauds of the defendants.
319. Plaintiff Kely has never been convicted of anything and remains
presumptively innocent.
57
320. However, despite knowing that Ballard is the actual monster in this terrible
ordeal, Angel Video released Sound of Freedom on Prime Video on December 26, 2023, giving
anyone across the world access to the lies and misappropriations about Plaintiff Kely.
FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION

(Defamation Against All Defendants)
321. Plaintiff Kely incorporates the preceding allegations and the attachments
to this complaint, as if fully set forth herein.
322. Defendants have published statements about the Plaintiff Kely which were
false and defamatory and not privileged.
323. Had Defendants reviewed the known publicly available information about
Plaintiff Kely’s involvement with Operation Triple Take, it would have known that their
statements and movie about Plaintiff Kely were false.
324. These statements and information were published negligently and/or with
actual malice in order for Defendants to make staggering amounts of money at the expense of
the Plaintiff Kely and her life in Colombia.
325. Defendants had actual knowledge the statements were false or had
entertained serious doubts as to whether the statements were true.
326. As a direct and proximate result of the wrongful conduct of Defendants,
Plaintiff Kely has suffered incarceration, criminal prosecution, legal fees, severe emotional
distress, permanent injury, loss of self-esteem and other injuries, all to her general damages in
reasonable sums.
58
Plaintiff Kely has incurred and will yet incur medical and therapy expenses, and lost wages all
to her special damages in a reasonable sum.
punitive damages in a reasonable sum should be awarded.
SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION

(Injurious Falsehood v. All Defendants)
330. Defendants have published statements about the Plaintiff Kely which were
false and defamatory and not privileged, claiming even after she has graduated from law
school and with no conviction and a Court record demonstrating she had no involvement in
any trafficking, that she was nothing less than a child trafficking monster.
331. Defendant Ballard knew from the very beginning that Plaintiff Kely was
not at any of the three meetings where Operation Triple Take was planned, yet he has testified
she was at the meetings.
332. Had the other Defendants reviewed the known publicly available
information about Plaintiff Kely’s involvement with Operation Triple Take, it would have
known that their statements and movie were false about the Plaintiff Kely.
333. These statements and information were published negligently and/or with
actual malice in order for Defendants to make staggering amounts of money at the expense of
the Plaintiff Kely and her life in Colombia.
59
334. Defendants had actual knowledge the statements were false or had
entertained serious doubts as to whether the statements were true.
Plaintiff Kely’s career has suffered, given that she has suffered incarceration, criminal
prosecution, legal fees, severe emotional distress, permanent injury, loss of self-esteem and
other injuries, all to her general damages in reasonable sums.
THIRD CAUSE OF ACTION

(Intentional Interference with Economic Relations)
to this complaint, as if fully set forth herein and more specifically.
339. Defendants intentionally interfered with both Plaintiff Kely’s present and
future economic relationship that Plaintiff Kely had, by branding her as a beauty queen child
trafficker who traded in her fame and influence to traffic children.
340. Defendants did so by improper means by framing her and claiming that
she is a child predator and monster.
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FOURTH CAUSE OF ACTION

(Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress against All Defendants)
344. Plaintiffs incorporate the preceding allegations and the attachments to this
complaint, as if fully set forth herein.
345. The conduct of the Defendants, as set forth herein, was outrageous and
intolerable in that it offended the generally accepted standards of decency and morality.
Plaintiff Kely career has suffered, given that she has suffered incarceration, criminal
Plaintiff Luz’s life and emotions have suffered greatly, as she has watched her only daughter
being wrongfully incarcerated, criminally prosecuted, paying legal fees, visiting her daughter
in prison day after day, week after week, month after month until she was released, and then
having her be retraumatized by the reckless release of Sound of Freedom.
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Plaintiffs have incurred and will yet incur medical and therapy expenses, and lost wages all to
their special damages in a reasonable sum.
FIFTH CAUSE OF ACTION

(Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress against All Defendants)
350. Plaintiffs incorporate the preceding allegations and the attachments to this
complaint, as if fully set forth herein.
351. The conduct of the Defendants, as set forth herein, was negligent and
reckless and violated standards of care required of NGOs and media.
Plaintiff Luz’s life and emotions have suffered greatly, as she has watched her only daughter
being wrongfully incarcerated, criminally prosecuted, paying legal fees, visiting her daughter
in prison day after day, week after week, month after month until she was released, and then
having her be retraumatized by the reckless release of Sound of Freedom.
Plaintiffs have incurred and will yet incur medical and therapy expenses, and lost wages all to
their special damages in a reasonable sum.
62
SIXTH CAUSE OF ACTION

(Invasion of Privacy for False Light against All Defendants)
357. Defendants, in both its printed publicity and in the movie Sound of
Freedom, of their portrayal of Plaintiff Kely, is highly offensive and has exposed Plaintiff
Kely to hatred, contempt, or ridicule in the public eye.
358. Had Defendants reviewed documents about Plaintiff Kely’s lack of
involvement with Operation Triple Take, which documents are of public record and open to
public inspection, they would have known that the claims about Plaintiff Kely are false.
63
SEVENTH CAUSE OF ACTION
(Invasion of Privacy for Misappropriation of Plaintiff Kely’s Name and Likeness
against All Defendants)
363. Defendants, in both its printed publicity and in the movie Sound of
Freedom, of their portrayal of Plaintiff Kely, used Plaintiff Kely’s name and likeness
erroneously and in order to earn money, and which has exposed Plaintiff Kely to hatred,
contempt, or ridicule in the public eye.
364. Had Defendants reviewed documents about Plaintiff Kely’s lack of
involvement with Operation Triple Take, which documents are of public record and open to
public inspection, they would have known that the claims about Plaintiff Kely are false.
PRAYER FOR RELIEF
WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs pray for judgment against Defendants as follows:
64
1. For general damages in an amount to be proved at trial;
2. For special damages in an amount to be proved at trial;
3. For punitive damages against all defendants in an amount sufficient to punish
them and to deter them and others in similar situations from engaging in such
conduct in the future;
4. For an immediate removal and
5. For such other costs, interest, expenses, attorney’s fees, and other relief the
Court finds appropriate under the circumstances.
JURY DEMAND
Pursuant to Rule 38(b) of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiffs hereby
demand a trial by jury in this case and submit herewith the applicable fee.
DATED this ___ day of February, 2024.
ALL UTAH LAW PLLC
_/s/Suzette Rasmussen
Suzette Rasmussen
GREEN LAW PLLC
_/s/Michael K. Green
Michael K. Green
MORTENSEN MILNE
_/s/Alan W. Mortensen
Alan W. Mortensen
Christopher J. Cheney
65
Plaintiffs’ Address:
c/o MORTENSEN/MILNE
68 South Main Street, Suite 700
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
66

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Suzette Rasmussen (15981)

ALL UTAH LAW PLLC If you do not respond to this

Alan W. Mortensen (6616)

Attorneys for Plaintiff

IN THE THIRD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT

SALT LAKE COUNTY, STATE OF UTAH

KELY JOHANA SUAREZ MOYA, an

PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE

2. Plaintiff Luz Miriam Moya Solano is a female adult citizen, resident of

Colombia, and the mother of Plaintiff Kely Johana Suarez Moya.

3. Defendant Timothy Ballard, aka Tim Ballard ("Ballard") is an adult citizen

and resident of the State of Utah.

Utah and is legally married to Ballard.

5. Defendant Operation Underground Railroad, Inc. ("OUR") is a Utah non-

6. Defendant Angel Studios, Inc. ("Angel Studios") is a Utah corporation.

7. Defendant Sound of Freedom Movie, LLC ("SOFMLLC") is a Delaware

limited liability company.

8. Defendant VAS Portal, LLC ("VAS") is a Utah limited liability company.

9. Defendant Harmon Brothers Marketing, LLC ("HB") is a Utah limited

10. Defendant The Spear Fund is a Utah non-profit corporation.

12. Defendant Alejandro Monteverde is an adult citizen and resident of the

Code Ann. (1953 as amended).

the defendants are residents or are based in the State of Utah.

in controversy exceeds $300,000 qualifying this claim for Tier 3 discovery.

18. Timothy Ballard is an American activist, speaker, and author.

19. Ballard portrays himself as a religious family man.

20. Ballard founded the non-profit organization Operation Underground

FOUNDING MYTH OF OUR

22. Defendant Timothy Ballard is a master at developing founding myths,

23. The "Founding Myth" of OUR was a sting operation conducted in

Cartagena, Colombia in 2013, entitled "Operation Triple Take."

Island of Baru just off the beaches of Cartagena, Colombia.

BALLARD’S FOUNDING MYTH

the island of Baru.

Kely, who were both known as child sex traffickers.

Samuel to discuss having a pedophile party.

Ballard, El Fuego, Eduardo, Samuel, and Plaintiff Kely.

children to be sex slaves.

30. Undercover agent Elkin from the Cuerpo Técnico de Investigación

have sex with at the party.

Fuego, Eduardo, Samuel and others.

decoy, was one of the ruse pedophile’s bodyguards.

36. Reyes proclaimed on Ballard’s podcast that Ballard infiltrated a pedophilia

cartel cell to bring up to 40 young children to the Island.

the sound of freedom."

arrested and jailed. https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-colombian-authorities-rescue-55-

42. The worldwide press went crazy with the news.

2014 “Kelly Johana: The queen of child sexual exploitation?”

for three seasons."

government, they executed the largest-known human trafficking bust to date."

completed their biggest mission yet, rescuing 55 children in Colombia."

50. Utah’s Fox13 news reported, "During a recent mission in Colombia in

rescuing sex slaves.

paltry in comparison to OUR.

obtain false government passports for future OPS.

trafficking, which everyone agrees is a noble cause.

57. Ballard became a character of mythical proportions with unquestioned

58. Ballard was appointed as a special advisor to Ivanka Trump in October

trafficking advisory board.

Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking in 2019.