Thierry Casasnovas, a self-proclaimed naturopath and controversial cantor of fasting and raw food, who has more than 500,000 subscribers on YouTube, was indicted on Friday March 10 at the end of his custodyespecially for “illegal practice of medicine”, according to the Perpignan prosecutor’s office. This 48-year-old man, now placed under judicial supervision, is also indicted for “breach of trust”, “forgery and use of forgery”, “misleading commercial practices”, “laundering” and “abuse of weakness”, according to the statement from the prosecution.
Thierry Casasnovas has made a name for himself through his videos, watched more than 80 million times, where he defends “raw eating” and abstinence to live better, regenerate and detoxify your body. According to these videos, these practices can prevent or even cure cancer, diabetes or depression.
“Highly lucrative” activities
During the summer of 2020, the prosecution had opened a judicial investigation against him, and a search had taken place in February 2022 in the Pyrénées-Orientales, at the home of this influencer who had not then been placed in police custody.
In November 2022, the interministerial mission for vigilance and the fight against sectarian aberrations (Miviludes) was alarmed by the influence of Thierry Casasnovas on several followers, who had in particular “give up their medical treatment”. “He encourages people to question medical theutic practices, explaining for example that chemotherapy is toxic and ineffective (…), a discourse that is part of conspiracy, to oppose conventional medicine”notes the interministerial mission of vigilance and the fight against sectarian aberrations (Miviludes).
The mission also erts that Thierry Casasnovas mentioned “the construction of “concentration camps” in the United States for those who would not submit to vaccination [contre le Covid-19] ». Among his various activities “very lucrative”according to Miviludes, Thierry Casasnovas offers several training courses – only online – entitled “Rejuvenation cure”, “Iridology”, “Love of children” or “Permaculture”, which cost between 200 and 500 euros.
For the ignment, “the mental influence that this individual would exert on fragile people, the isolation induced by his remarks, the break with the previous environment, the antisocial discourse and the exorbitant nature of the financial demands (…) are likely to favor a sectarian drift”.
The World with AFP