POLICE investigating the death of a woman who died following ‘slap therapy’ have issued a warrant for the arrest of a Chinese healer in the US.
Danielle Carr-Gomm, 71, died while apparently trying to cure her Type 1 diabetes with the bizarre treatment.
It is believed she neglected to take her regular insulin injections and had fasted for three days before being found in her hotel room at Cleeve House in Seend, Wiltshire.
The therapy involves people being slapped black and blue during the treatment, which was run by a Beijing-born man named Hongchi Xiao.
Xiao, 56, practiced a self-healing process named Paida-Lajin - and charged a whopping £750 per course.
The technique works on the basis that ‘toxins’ causing illness can be removed from the body by hard, repeated slapping and painful stretching on a bench.
Wiltshire Police launched an investigation at the time and arrested three people, including former Wall Street trader Xiao.
The trio were later bailed but the force has now been told by the Crown Prosecution Service it can take Xiao, whose registered address is in California, USA, to trial.
A warrant for his arrest was issued at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court on October 4.
The two other people arrested at the time of the incident have been released with no further action.
Speaking in 2016 when she died, Mrs Carr Gomm’s son, Matthew, said: ‘’She was persuaded by them that it would work.
‘’But she didn’t research enough into the background and other stories on the internet and other fatalities linked to it.”
French-born Mrs Carr-Gomm, who lived in Lewes, wrote a blog post about a session she had completed in Bulgaria prior to attending in the UK.
The grandmother-of-four wrote: “Large areas of my body... bruised and blue which indicated that a lot of ‘sha’ or poisoned blood and toxins had been released”.
She described painful seizures and vomiting “the most horrible syrupy black stuff” but believed it improved her blood sugar readings - and planned to attend more workshops.
An inquest into her death was previously opened and adjourned.
Xiao has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter.
Speaking after her death, son Matthew Carr-Gomm, who lives in New Zealand, said: "As a family, I remember we always had amazing holidays, visiting Peru and Sri Lanka amongst many other places, including Bulgaria, where we made many friends and visited several times a year.
"Mum was diagnosed with diabetes in 1999 and was very ill at the time. She began taking insulin that year and documented this ever since. She had a lifelong fear of needles so she struggled with the diagnosis and initially took a course of tablets instead.
"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.
"Her death has come as a huge shock to us all and we are grateful of the support we have received from Wiltshire Police and the kind messages we have received from family and friends at this really difficult time."
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