Juliette D’Souza, 59, (D.O.B 11/09/54) was convicted today of 20 counts of obtaining property by deception and three counts of fraud. She will be sentenced on Friday 30 May at Blackfriars Crown Court.
Baljit Ubhey, CPS London Chief Crown Prosecutor, said:
“D’Souza is a convincing and manipulative liar who preyed on the vulnerability of her victims and completely betrayed their trust.
“She took advantage of their personal circumstances by persuading them that they needed to pay a financial sacrifice to protect themselves, their families and friends from problems including redundancy and serious illness. To increase her credibility, D’Souza told some of her victims she was a barrister.
“She told her victims that the money she took would be used as a spiritual offering but instead used it to fund her lavish lifestyle, purchasing designer handbags, jewellery and antique furniture, renting high value property, and taking luxurious holidays.
“D’Souza had a devastating effect on her vulnerable victims, who put complete faith in her claims that she could improve their lives, and today she has been brought to justice for her crimes.”
Background
Juliette D’Souza was convicted of 20 counts of Obtaining Property by Deception contrary to the Theft Act 1968. She was also convicted of three counts of Fraud.
These convictions relate to 10 victims and the offences occurred between January 1998 and June 2010.
D’Souza took more than £900,000 from her victims during this period.
Juliette D’Souza presented herself as a faith healer or shaman. She told her victims that she also had connections with other shaman figures in Suriname, South America who could help with healing.
