'They could torture me': Former members reveal hell of life inside Church of Scientology

Former members of the Church of Scientology are saying that they're being followed, harassed and intimidated by the church they once dedicated their lives to, after daring to leave it.

The trial and conviction of Hollywood actor Danny Masterson for the rape of two women has, once again, shed light on the controversial Church of Scientology, with Masterson preying on Scientologist women, in part, because he knew the church would protect him.

The women who were assaulted by Masterson reported the attacks to the Church of Scientology, only to be victim-blamed and forbidden from reporting the crime to the police.

Though they eventually did, it took a staggering 12 years before the allegations were investigated by authorities.

A pivotal moment in Masterson's trial was the testimony of Claire Headley, a former senior Scientologist turned whistleblower.

Ms Headley was able to decipher for the jury the church's own records and uncovered a paper trail that showed the church was doing all it could to protect Danny Masterson.

After 30 years of devotion to the church, Ms Headley and husband Marc's escape from it in 2005 was the stuff of Hollywood movies.

There was no simple walking away from a religion they no longer believed in.

Mr Headley was the first to breach the compound, where they lived with fellow Scientologists, speeding away on his motorbike.

He was chased down the highway before his motorbike was run off the road by Scientologists pursuing him in their SUV.

They were only deterred from grabbing Mr Headley by the arrival of police who'd been called by a witness.

Some weeks later, Ms Headley concocted a need to leave the property, before running away from her security escort.

"I made the mistake of turning on the phone when I was heading to the bus station, and they used that to see the direction I was heading and therefore sent four staff members to intercept me," Ms Headley told Tara Brown.

"In my mind, I decided if they haul me out of here, I am going to scream. I knew that if I didn't succeed, I would never see Marc again."

They're not alone in their dramatic and traumatic exits from the church.

Valerie Haney says she has been followed and harassed, and her house broken into, since she dramatically escaped the church she was born into.

Signing her first "billion-year" contract at the age of just eight, it took years for Haney to understand she was living in a parallel universe – overworked, underpaid, and even denied the freedom to leave – until she met visiting actors hired to make training videos for parishioners.

Haney finally saw an opportunity to escape when, on the last day of filming, she fled to a section of the car park that didn't have security cameras and hid in the trunk of an unlocked car owned by one of the unsuspecting actors.

"I heard my name, they were looking for me already. And I was like 'please don't pop the trunk, please don't pop the trunk'," Haney detailed.

Miraculously, the car was not stopped or searched as it left the property and Haney was free.  

Valerie is suing the church for human trafficking, kidnapping, harassment, stalking, and violation of child labour laws but she's already encountered her first legal hurdle.

In defending the civil lawsuits brought against it, the church is relying on its infamous contracts – including the same one Haney signed when she was a child, a billion-year pledge to serve the church.

While Haney believes those pledges shouldn't be binding in the real world, courts are ruling these contracts cannot be questioned because to do so would be an attack on religious freedom.

The court has ordered Haney to return to the lion's den, to go through Scientology's internal arbitration process, giving the church the power to be judge and jury ruling on its own behaviour.

The Sea Organization's infamous billion-year contract binds members of the Church of Scientology  into a lifetime commitment.
The Sea Organization's infamous billion-year contract binds members of the Church of Scientology into a lifetime commitment. (Nine)
"They're saying that the only way to do religious arbitration is for me to go alone, and I am trying to fight that right now because I am fearing for my life if I go back into that compound all by myself," Haney said.

"They could hold me there until the end of time. They could kidnap me. They could torture me."

Despite those fears, Valerie will enter Scientology's religious arbitration to ultimately get her day in court.  

"It's really difficult because I also want (Scientology) to get the justice that they deserve, and I am going to take them to court.  So if that is going to be the step that needs to occur (first), then I will do that arbitration if that's what it takes to actually get them to proper court."

The Church of Scientology responded to questions put forward to it from 60 Minutes and categorically denied any of the allegations that took place in the interviews conducted.

Find its statement below:

"The Church does not prohibit or discourage members from reporting criminal conduct of anyone — Scientologists or not — to law enforcement.

"Quite the opposite. Church policy explicitly demands Scientologists abide by all laws of the land.

"All allegations to the contrary are TOTALLY FALSE.

"There is not a scintilla of evidence supporting the scandalous allegations that the Church harassed the accusers.

"Every single instance of supposed harassment by the Church has been debunked.

"This includes frivolous lawsuits which have been issued against the Church and which have been dismissed by the Courts, resulting in instances of complainants being ordered to pay costs to the Church."

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