An alternative healer who failed to get medical help for a 71-year-old diabetic woman who died after she stopped taking insulin at his slapping therapy workshop has been found guilty of her manslaughter.
Danielle Carr-Gomm died at Cleeve House in Seend, Wiltshire, in October 2016 while taking part in the Paida Lajin therapy event, which sees patients being slapped or slapping themselves repeatedly.
Hongchi Xiao, of Cloudbreak, California, was convicted by the jury at Winchester Crown Court of the manslaughter by gross negligence of Mrs Carr-Gomm, from Lewes, East Sussex.
The 61-year-old was extradited for the trial from Australia, where he had previously been prosecuted over the death of a six-year-old boy who also died after his parents withdrew his insulin medication after attending the defendant’s workshop in Sydney.
The court heard that Mrs Carr-Gomm, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 1999, was left “howling in pain” as she became seriously ill before she died on the fourth day of the workshop.
Duncan Atkinson KC, prosecuting, told the jury that Mrs Carr-Gomm had sought alternatives to her insulin medication for type 1 diabetes because of her vegetarianism and fear of needles.
She had first joined a Paida Lajin workshop, which means “slap and stretch”, run by the defendant in Bulgaria in July 2016.
She became seriously ill after stopping her insulin medicine before she restarted and subsequently recovered.
Mr Atkinson described how Mrs Carr-Gomm went on to attend another of Xiao’s workshops in Wiltshire in October of that year.
The court had heard how Xiao said “well done” to Mrs Carr-Gomm, after she told the group she had stopped taking her insulin at the week-long retreat, and she became seriously ill.
Mr Atkinson said that by the third day “she was vomiting, tired and weak, and by the evening she was howling in pain and unable to respond to questions”.
A chef at the workshop, Teresa Hayes, told jurors Mrs Carr-Gomm was “delirious” and “frothing at the mouth” before she died, adding that she wanted to call an ambulance but trusted those with more experience of the holistic healing method.
Mr Atkinson described how the defendant failed to get medical help for Mrs Carr-Gomm before she died in the early hours of the fourth day.
The prosecutor said: “Those who had received and accepted the defendant’s teachings misinterpreted Mrs Carr-Gomm’s condition as a healing crisis.”
He said that Xiao had been an “exponent” of Paida Lajin for 10 years and had written a book on it.
Mr Atkinson said: “It is said to be a method of self-healing in which ‘poisonous waste’ is expelled from the body through patting and slapping parts of the body.”
He added: “He does not have medical qualifications or training.
“In a book that he wrote about Paida Lajin, the defendant asserted that the taking of insulin leads to liver and eye problems, and that in contrast the Paida Lajin was ‘safer and more reliable than existing healing practices’ which would result in ‘significant improvement’ or full recovery in 90% of cases, including cases of diabetes.”
He added that Xiao also wrote in the book that “doctors are brainwashed by drug producers to act as salespersons for their drugs”.
The court heard that Mrs Carr-Gomm had provided a testimonial for Xiao, describing him as a “messenger sent by God” who was “starting a revolution to put the power back in the hands of the people to cure themselves and to change the whole system of health care”.
Mrs Carr-Gomm was born in France and moved to the UK aged 21.
Speaking after her death, her son Matthew Carr-Gomm, who lives in New Zealand, said: “She was always keen to try and find alternative methods of treating and dealing with her diabetes, and was very interested in alternative and holistic medicine and therapies.
“I know she was desperate to try and cure herself of this disease.
“She always maintained a healthy lifestyle and was adamant that nothing would stop her from living a full life.
“In recent years, mum was in a great place with a partner, a lovely home and was travelling the world.
“She had a lot of life left in her.”
He said the death of Mrs Carr-Gomm had come as a “huge shock” to the family.
Giving evidence during the trial, Xiao said he would “never” persuade someone who needed insulin not to take it, adding that insulin is “useful”.
On his attitude towards medication at his workshops, he added: “First of all, I said I’m not a medical doctor, so everyone is responsible for their own medication.
“Secondly, I’m not fully against medicine, what I’m concerned about is the side effect of the medicine.”
Following the verdict, head of the Crown Prosecution Service special crime division, Rosemary Ainslie, said: “Hongchi Xiao knew the consequences of Danielle Carr-Gomm’s decision to stop taking insulin could be fatal, he had seen it before.
“Hongchi Xiao was the man in charge, yet he failed to respond to Mrs Carr-Gomm’s worsening condition with tragic consequences.
“His failure to take reasonable steps to help Mrs Carr-Gomm substantially contributed to her death and amounted to gross negligence.”
Detective Chief Inspector Phil Walker of Wiltshire Police said: “Xiao had no medical qualifications yet despite this, was actively encouraging those in attendance at his workshops to refrain from taking their regular medication, knowing full well the consequences.”
He added: “Xiao breached his position of trust and whilst in attendance at his workshop, Danielle’s health deteriorated quickly and she sadly passed away.”
Xiao will be sentenced on October 1.
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