Faking Amish: Yet more doubts over TLC show as cast member tells 'new fiancé' she has been divorced... but they already have a child together in real life



Doubts over honesty of show following lives of Amish in NYC

Two cast members, Abe and Rebecca, 'have a child together'

Jeremiah 'is divorced from wife after abusing her and has three kids'



Yet more doubts have been raised over the authenticity of 'reality television' show Breaking Amish after one character revealed she has been divorced, which is rarely allowed in the Amish community.

Cast member Rebecca accepts a proposal from Abe on the TLC show, which depicts the two meeting in New York for the 'first time' - yet they are believed to already have a child together in real life.

It has now been claimed that, despite the 'revelation' on the show, Rebecca left her first husband, Rufus Hostetler, to start a relationship with Abe in 2010.



The claims spark yet more trouble for Breaking Amish, which has repeatedly come under fire for deceiving viewers since its launch more than a month ago.



TLC says the show follows five Amish and Mennonite men and women as they leave their communities for the first time and head to New York City - yet this story has slowly crumbled.



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'Honesty': Breaking Amish cast member Rebecca, right, tells her fiance Abe, left, that she is divorced

Secret: But in reality, the couple are believed to have been together for two years and have a child

While each cast member claims to have grown up in the strict communities, evidence has surfaced suggesting they have decidedly dark pasts - involving divorce, arrests, children and domestic abuse.

It comes in stark contrast to the naive characters portrayed on the show, who stare slack-jawed at Manhattan's towering buildings and pray as they travel by plane 'for the first time'. RELATED ARTICLES Previous

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Next 'I'm not adulterer. I'm not gay. I didn't beat anybody': New... Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher 'locked in bitter divorce... Share this article Share Among the characters, Rebecca and Abe are portrayed as meeting for the first time on the show - with a possible love match on the cards. But, after the show depicts the pair getting closer and Abe proposing to Rebecca, she reveals she has been divorced - to his apparent shock.

'False claims': On the show, Rebecca and Abe, pictured, claim they have never met before 'Falling in love': Rebecca had actually left her husband for Abe shortly after her marriage in March 2010 'I have to make a decision between you and, like, being Amish,' he says on the show.

But a photograph uploaded to a Facebook page, Breaking Amish the Truth , apparently shows that the pair in fact already have a child together. Reports and marriage records reveal that Rebecca married Rufus Hostetler in March 2010 before divorcing him this past summer, although their relationship apparently broke down much earlier.

In a message on Hostetler's Facebook wall in October 2010, he writes: 'I am tryn 2 figure out why in th world abe schmucker wud want to b a friend on face book afterall he left wht my wife.'

And while Abe claims in the program that he has never partied, police records - and a mug shot - reveal he was arrested for alcohol intoxication in a public place in 2008, when he was just 18. Old life: Blog reports identified her ex-husband as Rufus Hostetler, pictured with his new girlfriend

In perhaps the most shocking revelation about the real lives of the characters, Jeremiah, another cast member, is divorced from a woman who claims he repeatedly beat her.



Brush with the law: A mug shot of Abe from 2008 after he was arrested for being drunk in public

Public records reveal that 32-year-old Jeremiah Raber, who regularly swears on the show, has three children - two daughters, aged seven and three, and a son, five.

The children live with their mother, Naomi Stutzman, in Ohio. The couple married in 2005 and she filed for divorce in 2011, citing gross neglect of duty, extreme cruelty and incompatibility.

Speaking to CBS21 , Stutzman, who has also left the Amish community, called the show 'a fake' and lambasted TLC for perpetuating lies on a family channel about a man accused of repeatedly attacking his wife.

'The kids and I suffered for years at the hands of this man,' she said.



'My family is livid because they took him in and cared for him, now he is doing this? I'm not surprised at him. What surprised me was TLC. My kids and I watch TLC. They are supposed to be a family channel. For them to do this is appalling.'

Police reports showed she called authorities on at least eight occasions and Jeremiah was arrested for domestic violence in 2005. She said that his violence eventually led to their break up.

'Reality' TV? TLC's show Breaking Amish has come under fire for its false claims about its characters' pasts

On one occasion, he punched her in the stomach while she was pregnant, a police report notes. She said that TLC offered her $10,00 to stay quiet on the incidents, which TLC denies.



She added that, while Jeremiah is shown getting a large arm tattoo in Breaking Amish, he has in fact had it for years - and it bears the names of his three children.

Jeremiah was also reportedly away from his Amish community for up to 14 years and is pictured on social networking sites surrounded by beer cans.

Daniel Gingerich, who claims he lived with Jeremiah for a year and a half, added: 'I've known him for years. I let him move in because he was living out of his truck and had no place else to go.'

And the other cast members apparently were holding back some information, too.



On the show: Jeremiah says he is desperate to break away from his Amish community on the show - but has reportedly already spent 14 years away

Past: Photographs from an old MySpace page show Jeremiah looking decidedly un-Amish

TLC has previously admitted that Kate, who is billed as an Amish bishop's daughter and aspiring model, has been arrested for a DUI, but now new information paints an even more rebellious picture.

As revealed on a Facebook page, , s h e has previously submitted images to modeling agencies - which is at odds with the Amish stance against photographs, believing they represent 'vanity' which they deem a sin.

Online records show that Kate posted a photograph on exploretalent.com to enter a Best Smile contest in 2010 - years before she claimed she gave up her Amish life to move to the city.

This internet savvy version of Kate is a far cry from an episode of Breaking Amish in which she is overwhelmed by new technology and struggles to work an elevator.



Revealed: Jeremiah's wife, Naomi Stutzman, spoke to CBS21 about how Jeremiah repeatedly attacked her

Wild: Pictures also show Jeremiah, left, surrounded by friends swigging from beer cans

The final character, Sabrina, a 25-year-old from an Italian and Puerto Rico family who was adopted into the faith, is pictured on Facebook kissing a man while she wears skimpy clothing.

She was reportedly married in 2009 and has not been a practicing Mennonite for years, friends claim, suggesting this is not the 'first time' she has left the community.

She is pictured on her wedding day in a ceremony that is not traditionally Mennonite.

The apparent betrayal by the creators of Breaking Amish is documented on a Facebook page, Breaking Amish the Truth , on which people who claim to know the cast have vented their anger.

Scores of people have also uploaded photographs showing the cast in their 'real' lives.

Mose Gingerich, a former Amish who appeared on a separate show, Amish in the City, lambasted the show for its dishonesty.

Dark pasts: TLC had previously admitted that Kate, pictured left on the show, was arrested for DUI, right



Aspiring model: A photo of Kate has been found online from a smiling contest in 2010

'This show is doing exactly opposite of what I stand for,' he wrote on his blog. 'The fakeness of these characters supposedly just leaving the community, when in fact, they have been out for many years.

'The fact that they act like things like microwaves and iPhones are something strange, when indeed, they have owned them for years themselves, and the disrespect they show towards the Amish.

'I would never stoop to doing a show like this, and really wish no one else would have done it either.'

In response to the outrage, TLC has said it will address the revelations in time.

'There is a lot of information floating around about the group featured on Breaking Amish. Much of it is not true, but some of it is - and is addressed in upcoming episodes,' TLC told Variety.

Half truths: Sabrina, a Mennonite, was reportedly married in 2009 - which is not mentioned on the show

Double life: But Facebook photos apparently show her kissing a man and wearing skimpy clothes



Keeping it quiet: An acquaintance of Sabrina's uploaded this picture of her on her wedding day

'Our Amish and Mennonite producers that we hired introduced us to Amish and Mennonite men and women who were already determined to leave. They had already made the decision to go out and see the world, with or without us. They courageously allowed us to follow them on this journey.'

Despite these protestations, TLC has adjusted the description of the show on its website.

It was previously billed as 'four Amish and one Mennonite, breaking away from their faith and traveling to New York City for the first time'.

Now the TLC site explains: 'Breaking Amish offers an unprecedented look into a rarely seen world, following four Amish people and one Mennonite as they forgo horses and buggies for New York City's taxis and subways' - taking out any reference to 'first time' in New York City.

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