Found at:
http://www.lineone.net/express/99/09/21/news/n2040-d.html
====================
21 September, 1999
Mystery of sect 'swindlers' and the court's shredded evidence
Seven leaders of the controversial Church of Scientology sect went on
trial yesterday accused of swindling members out of thousands of
pounds.
The defendants, all French - five of them women - are said to have
forced gullible new members to pay up to £550 for a "health
consultation" and £15,000 for injections of phoney vitamins. They face
10 years in jail.
The trial opened in Marseille amid accusations that the Church of
Scientology has placed "moles" on the court staff and in the higher
reaches of the French justice system.
Ten days ago the prosecution discovered that 3d tons of evidence
against the defendants had been shredded. France's Justice Minister
Elisabeth Guigou ruled that court officials destroyed the vital
papers, audio cassettes and videos by accident and ordered the
hearings to go ahead.
The judge threw out a claim by Xavier Delamare, leading Scientologist
in Southern France, that there could not be a fair trial because of
the suspicion over the missing evidence.
The sect has long been under fire for illegally practising medicine.
The cost of a "consultation" with a Scientologist ranges between £50
and £550. To "expel drugs and toxins" - a favourite sect phrase -
sauna sessions with vitamin injections cost up to £15,000. Delamare
insists: "The Church of Scientology never swindles anybody. All
members are free to join or leave as they wish. It is untrue that they
are subject to any moral pressure."
But two former members, Jean-Jacques Greneron and Raymond Scapilleto,
will tell the court they were victims of fraudulent practices over the
sale of cures and therapy. The sect, founded by science fiction writer
Ron Hubbard in 1954, claims eight million members on whom it imposes
iron discipline and demands unquestioning loyalty.
A French parliamentary report accused it of "destabilising the minds
of members" and making "exorbitant financial demands" on them but it
is still legally authorised in France.
Star members include Tom Cruise, wife Nicole Kidman and John Travolta
who has claimed the "Church" is the target of persecution.
Scientology President Heber C. Jentzsch said in Los Angeles he would
complain to the UN Human Rights Commission that government religious
intolerance in France threatens the right of minority religious
members to a fair trial.
The sect accuses opponents of a slander campaign but this is the third
time vital documents in a Scientology case have disappeared. France,
with 45,000 Scientology members, accounts for a tenth of the sect's
£60m-a-year budget.
© Express Newspapers Ltd
(includes picture of Jean-Jacques Greneron and Raymond Scapilleto with
caption, "WE WERE VICTIMS: Former sect members Greneron, left, and
Scapilleto outside court yesterday.")
====================
Sue, SP4(:), listed on the Scieno Sitter list 5 times!
"It will take a *long* time to find another enemy
with the combination of evil and incompetence
you see in Scientology."--Keith Henson
Return to The Skeptic Tank's main Index page.
FROM JACK GEE IN PARIS
--
http://www.primenet.com/~xenubat
The views and opinions stated within this web page are those of the
author or authors which wrote them and may not reflect the views and
opinions of the ISP or account user which hosts the web page. The
opinions may or may not be those of the Chairman of The Skeptic Tank.