'Self-appointed spiritual leader' charged with sexual assault: Edmonton police
Edmonton police say a "self-appointed spiritual leader" has been charged with sexual assault, and investigators believe there may be additional victims.
Johannes (John) de Ruiter, 63, was arrested on Saturday.
He is accused of sexually assaulting four people in separate incidents between 2017 and 2020.
De Ruiter is a self-styled spiritual leader of a group known as the College of Integrated Philosophy, or the Oasis Group, which operated out of the Oasis Building at 109 Avenue and 177 Street from 2007 to 2021, police said.
Since 2021, he has been holding meetings out of an office building on St. Albert Trail in St. Albert, and holding spiritual retreats at a campground near Smith, Alta.
"It was reported that the accused informed certain female group members that he was directed by a spirit to engage in sexual activity with them, and that engaging in sexual activity with him will provide them an opportunity to achieve a state of higher being or spiritual enlightenment," police said in a release.
De Ruiter is originally from Stettler. He’s been sharing his so-called spiritual teachings for more than three decades.
John de Ruiter
Stephen Kent, a professor emeritus at the University of Alberta, has been following his activity since the 90s.
“It’s complicated trying to pin down exactly what de Ruiter’s teachings are,” he told CTV News on Monday. “In a practical matter, de Ruiter never registered his group as a religious charity. The organization called Oasis, that’s a form of business. Consequently, we have a business leader giving spiritual teachings to people.”
He says there were indications in the past that de Ruiter was having inappropriate relations with his followers, but there have never been any criminal allegations until now.
“The first indications that John was having sex with followers probably came in late 1999 when his marriage fell apart. He became involved with two sisters who were members,” Kent said
“The issues in this trial are not moral and ethical. They are not concerned with the appropriateness or inappropriateness of a leader, especially a spiritual leader, having sex with followers. The charges involve criminal allegations, and that’s what the focus of the trial will be.”
John de Ruiter
Kent says other people who may have been victimized may feel too much shame or fear to come forward.
“A lot of people who experience traumatic events inside high demand groups are afraid to come forward. They are embarrassed, they are afraid of retaliation, they probably have developed a mental attitude that the leader has extraordinary powers.
“The fact that only four women have launched formal complaints with their names is not necessarily an indication of how widespread the harmful behaviours might have been.”
A representative for de Ruiter sent a written statement to CTV News in response to the charges.
“Mr. de Ruiter will be represented by legal counsel and intends to vigorously contest these charges in a court of law. This situation is deeply impactful for those who have known and do know Mr. de Ruiter."
Anyone who believes they have been victimized by the accused is asked to call the Edmonton Police Service at 780-423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
With files from CTV News National's Bill Fortier.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
BREAKING Mounties will not be charged in shooting death of B.C. Indigenous man
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021.
Canada's favourite sport to watch is hockey, survey shows
The 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have already delivered a fever level of fan excitement in Canada.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.