Alberta's provincial flag flies in Ottawa, Monday July 6, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
EDMONTON – The wife of a self-styled spiritual leader has been charged with three counts of sexual assault stemming from separate occasions between 2017 and 2020.
Edmonton police say they arrested 64-year-old Leigh Ann de Ruiter on Monday.
Her arrest comes almost two months after her husband, Johannes de Ruiter, was charged with four counts of sexual assault.
Police have said he is the leader of an Edmonton group known as the College of Integrated Philosophy or the Oasis Group.
They say the couple’s charges stem from the three same alleged sexual assaults.
Edmonton police have alleged that Johannes de Ruiter would tell certain female members that he was directed by a spirit to engage in sexual activity with them, and that doing so would provide them with the opportunity to achieve spiritual enlightenment.
They did not elaborate on allegations against his wife.
Investigators believe there may be additional complainants, and are encouraging them to come forward.
