Danielle Carr-Gomm, 71, sought alternative treatments for her diabetes due to her fear of needles.
She traveled from her home in East Sussex, UK, to Bulgaria in July 2026 after learning about Hongchi Xiao. After the visit, she stopped taking her insulin, which made her seriously ill.
She began vomiting and refused to heed the pleas of her loved ones, who begged her to resume her insulin treatment until she eventually recovered.
In October of that year, she attended a retreat hosted by Xiao, 61, in Seend, Wiltshire. Xiao, referred to as ‘Master Xiao’ in the event program, promoted his “Paida Lajin therapy” as an alternative to insulin, and Danielle saw him as a ‘messenger sent by God.’
She stopped taking insulin again and became ill once more. She died on the fourth day of the retreat after Xiao failed to call for help.
Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson said: ‘It is said to be a method of self-healing in which “poisonous waste” is expelled from the body through patting and slapping parts of the body. He knew that Mrs Carr-Gomm was risking death, and he knew that he had an influence over her decision. In short, therefore he chose to congratulate a diabetic who stopped injecting, rather than to persuade them not to take so grievous a risk to their life.’
Mr. Atkinson informed the jury that Xiao had previously been prosecuted for manslaughter after a six-year-old boy died in 2015. The boy had stopped taking insulin after his parents took him to Xiao’s ‘alternative therapy.’
Xiao denies the manslaughter charges, asserting that he had no influence over the students and no more responsibility than anyone else at the retreat.
Charles Row KC, defending Xiao, told the jury that the defendant denied caring for Danielle and had made it ‘absolutely clear’ that he was not medically trained. He also said Xiao advised her not to suddenly stop taking her insulin.
