Alternative Healer Jailed for 15 Years Over Manslaughter of Diabetic Woman at ‘Slapping Therapy’ Workshop

An alternative healer, Hongchi Xiao, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for the manslaughter of Danielle Carr-Gomm, a 71-year-old diabetic woman who died after attending his controversial “slapping therapy” workshop. Xiao, who promoted the Paida Lajin therapy method, was convicted of gross negligence manslaughter at Winchester Crown Court in July.

Mrs Carr-Gomm passed away during a week-long retreat at Cleeve House in Seend, Wiltshire, in October 2016. The Paida Lajin sessions involved participants repeatedly slapping themselves or being slapped by others as part of a supposed healing process.

Xiao, who had been deported from Australia for the trial, was previously prosecuted there following the death of a six-year-old boy whose parents withdrew his insulin after attending one of Xiao’s workshops.

The court heard that Mrs Carr-Gomm, diagnosed with diabetes in 1999, stopped taking her insulin during the retreat, a decision Xiao openly supported. She became gravely ill on the third and fourth days of the event, vomiting, weak, and “howling in pain” before succumbing to her condition. Prosecutors revealed Xiao failed to seek medical assistance despite her visible distress.

Mrs Carr-Gomm had been looking for alternative therapies to insulin (Picture: Wiltshire Police/PA Wire)

During sentencing, Mr Justice Bright noted Xiao’s lack of remorse and continued promotion of Paida Lajin even while imprisoned. “You knew from the first day that Mrs Carr-Gomm had stopped taking her insulin, and you supported this decision,” the judge said. Xiao’s minimal efforts to encourage her to resume her medication were deemed insufficient and ultimately fatal.

The court learned that Mrs Carr-Gomm had a fear of needles and sought alternative treatments for her diabetes. She had previously attended a similar workshop in Bulgaria, where she also stopped taking insulin but managed to recover after becoming ill.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson KC described Paida Lajin as a practice aimed at expelling “poisonous waste” from the body through slapping and stretching. Xiao, who had no medical qualifications, claimed the method could promote self-healing. His failure to recognise Mrs Carr-Gomm’s deteriorating condition as a medical emergency was central to his conviction.

Following the verdict, Rosemary Ainslie of the Crown Prosecution Service said, “Hongchi Xiao knew the fatal risks of stopping insulin. His failure to act reasonably contributed to Mrs Carr-Gomm’s death and amounted to gross negligence.”

Xiao has been an ‘exponent’ of Paida Lajin for 10 years and has written a book on it (Picture: CPS/PA Wire)

Mrs Carr-Gomm’s son, Matthew, described his mother as someone deeply interested in alternative medicine and determined to live a whole life despite her condition. “She was always keen to explore ways to treat her diabetes and was adamant about maintaining a healthy lifestyle,” he said.

The tragic case underscores the dangers of unregulated alternative therapies and highlights the devastating consequences of rejecting critical medical treatment.