DEREK THURLBECK OF HIGH WYCOMBE SENTENCED IN READING FOR SEXUAL ASSAULTS IN SLOUGH
A spiritual healer from High Wycombe, Derek Thurlbeck, who claimed to have a sincere belief in his abilities, has been sentenced to over two years in prison for inappropriately touching women he was assisting.Thurlbeck, 63, visited the homes of four women in Slough between 2017 and 2019, during which he touched their genitals over their clothes under the guise of spiritual healing.
Described by the court as a ‘master manipulator,’ he also told one woman she was ‘cursed’ in an attempt to persuade her to undergo his healing practices.
The court heard that Thurlbeck sexually assaulted these women at their residences over a two-year period.
Her Honour Judge Real stated that Thurlbeck offered free spiritual healing but engaged in ‘inappropriate’ and ‘unprofessional’ touching during these sessions, using spiritual rhetoric to justify his actions.
She emphasized that Thurlbeck ‘did not have an elaborate plan,’ but he exploited the vulnerability of his clients.
The Crown Court was informed how Thurlbeck approached one woman—whose identity remains confidential—by suggesting she was cursed and warning her that ‘something terrible’ could happen if she did not receive his healing.
The woman’s statement, read aloud by prosecutor Walton Hornsby, conveyed the emotional impact of the incidents, saying, ‘The incident has affected me emotionally.
It has left me with flashbacks.
I feel he has invaded a space in my own home.
Since the incident I have lost trust in anyone I don’t know, I have stopped going out and I want it all to end soon so I can get on with my life.
If I see a small car like the one he used to drive I get scared he has returned.
This went on for two whole years and I’m still living with the consequences of this.
He is very dangerous; he is very clever and a master manipulator.’ Defense lawyer Edward Butler argued that Thurlbeck’s actions stemmed from a genuine and sincere belief in his healing abilities.
He stated, ‘This is not a case where the defendant was entirely motivated by a sexual appetite.
This was somebody who had a genuine and sincere belief in his ability and his calling to try to help people.
It is something he has lived with his entire life.
There were momentary lapses during his dealings in which he succumbed to temptation.
For the most part, the defendant was sincerely motivated towards these defendants.
All of this cannot be explained away by some great charade.’ Mr.
Butler added that since Thurlbeck’s arrest in March 2019, he had abstained from performing healings for over two and a half years.
In sentencing, Judge Real noted, ‘They [the women] would not have agreed to your sessions if they knew there was a sexual motivation behind it.
All of this gives me cause for concern for your future risk.
You don’t seem to have very much insight into the problematic nature of what you did.’ Thurlbeck was sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Monday, August 16, to two years and six months in prison after being convicted of five counts of sexual assault following a week-long trial earlier this year.
He is to serve half of this sentence before being eligible for release on licence.
Additionally, he received an indefinite sexual harm prevention order.
