full screenJoão Teixeira de Faria is engaged in what he calls “spiritual surgery”. Archive image. Photo: Eraldo Peres/AP/TT
A famous Brazilian “healer” accused of sexually assaulting his female followers has been sentenced to 118 years in prison. The man is convicted of four counts of rape, according to the authorities.
He must also pay damages of upwards of SEK 200,000 to the victims.
81-year-old João Teixeira de Faria, or João de Deus (João of God), has been treating thousands of people every month at his “spiritual hospital” in the small town of Abadania in central Brazil. Hundreds of women have accused him of forcing himself on them sexually under the pretense of curing them. The oldest cases are from 1973.
Faria was arrested in 2018. He has since been under house arrest and has denied the charges. In total, the trial included 17 charges.