A Melbourne doctor formed a cult, using his influence to exploit and abuse the children of his followers, leading to a shocking court case.
Melbourne: A skin doctor in Melbourne started a cult that mixed Buddhism and Christianity. He used his so-called “godlike status” to abuse the children of his followers.
Pradeep Dissanayake, who ran the Melbourne Medical Skin Clinic, returned from Sri Lanka in 2016 and began preaching. He quickly gained control over his followers, telling them how to live and even how to raise their kids.
His followers had to ask for permission for everything, even simple things like showering. They had to kneel when he entered their homes, and men and women were separated into different houses.
He took advantage of his position to access two 12-year-old girls, daughters of his followers. The court found he repeatedly abused them over several months, including during a trip to buy supplies.
Dissanayake claimed he was teaching the girls to “respect the lord” and insisted he didn’t get any pleasure from the abuse. The court called this claim chilling and delusional.
The court noted that the girls were vulnerable and that he used his influence to commit these crimes. Initially, he was sentenced to eight years in prison, but prosecutors argued it wasn’t enough.
The appeal court agreed and increased his sentence to over ten years, emphasizing the serious nature of his actions and the significant age gap between him and the victims.
They pointed out that he planned and concealed his actions, showing no remorse until the day he was sentenced. Dissanayake, a well-educated man, knew what he was doing was wrong.
He moved to Australia in 2006 with his family and was a licensed doctor until he was suspended in 2022 after the charges were brought against him.
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