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Fountain of the WorldThe Fountain of the World was founded by Krishna Venta (true name was Francis Heindswatzer Pencovic). The cult was also known as the WKFL Foundation (Wisdon, Knowledge, Faith, Love). Pencovic was born in 1911, married in 1937 and divorced in 1944. In 1948, Pencovic changed his name and founded his religion. He was ordered to pay child support but did not from 1945 to 1951. He claimed a religious exemption but the court ruled against him in 1955 (Pencovic v. Pencovic, 45 Cal. 2d 97, 287 P.2d 501). Pencovic was arrested in 1941 after sending a threatening letter to President Roosevelt. Later, using the name Frank Jensen, he committed a series of crimes including burglary, larceny and violating the Mann Act. He also spent a few months in a mental hospital. Krishna Venta's cult settled at 585 Box Canyon Road in Canoga Park, California. He claimed to be 244,000 years old and that he would never die. He arrived on Earth, supposedly, in 1932 at Mount Everest. On December 10, 1958, former members of Pencovic's cult, Ralph Muller and Peter Kamenoff, set off explosives killing themselves, Pencovic and several others. Krishna Venta is buried in Valhalla Memorial Park in Burbank, California. His grave is unmarked but near that of Oliver Hardy (of Laurel and Hardy). The Fountain of the World was located at 585 Box Canyon Road, Canoga Park, California and is mentioned in "Helter Skelter" and "The Family."
The Other Murders Connected to the Fountain of the WorldAmong followers of the Manson case, the Fountain is possibly best known for its connection to the Manson Family. But did you know of the other murders connected to the Fountain? Of course, there was the bombing mentioned above, but there's more. Fred Medina and Danny Townsend were convicted for the 1972 murders of Dori Haines (15) and Cheryl Monticello (16). Medina and Townsend lived at the Fountain of the World at the time. The victims had been hitchhiking to shop at Topanga Canyon Plaza when they were picked up by Medina (21), Townsend (19), Lisa Gleitsman (17) and Virginia Walton (15). The six (and possibly another girl friend) then allegedly spent the day at a Malibu beach partying and taking drugs. They then proceeded to a deserted hillside near Woolsey Canyon Road and Valley Circle Drive. Gleitsman admitted to being jealous of Dori and Cheryl. According to Gleitsman and Walton, the two men had sex with the victims. The jealous girls then attacked the victims. To keep them from going to the police, Medina and Townsend then killed them. In 1973, Indian members of the Red Wind Foundation moved to the Fountain of the World property. In October of the following year, the body of cab driver George Aird was found at the bottom of a drain pipe at the Indian camp. Seven people were arrested in connection with the murder. A couple of days earlier, some of the group had broken into a neighbor's house and beat him for an hour and a half in a robbery attempt. After the arrests, residents of the canyon told of six months of terror from the Indians firing shots at all hours of the night, death threats and the constant beating of drums.
My Web Pages About the Fountain of the World |
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