A Nepalese guru whom his followers consider to be a reincarnation of Buddha has been found guilty of sexual assault on children, a spokesperson for the Nepalese justice system said.
Ram Bahadur Bomjan, nicknamed “Little Buddha”, gained his notoriety as a teenager, his disciples attributing to him the ability to meditate for months without moving, without water, food or sleep.
He has long been accused of having physically and sexually assaulted worshipers.
“The district court on Monday found Bomjan guilty of sexual assault on children,” said Sikindar Kaapar, a court spokesman in the southern Nepalese city of Sarlahi. The sentence is expected to be handed down next month.
The 33-year-old guru had been on the run from the authorities for several years. He was arrested in January near the capital Kathmandu.
According to the police, a sum of 30 million Nepalese rupees (more than 200,000 euros) in cash was discovered during his arrest, as well as foreign currencies.
Dozens of complaints of violence were filed against him in 2010. He explained that he beat the victims because they interfered with his meditation.
An 18-year-old nun accused him in 2018 of raping her in a monastery.
The following year, police opened another investigation after families reported the disappearance of four of his followers.
The investigation has yielded nothing to date, a criminal police official, Dinesh Acharya, said on Wednesday.
Before living in hiding, Ram Bahadur Bomjan could gather tens of thousands of people to attend his so-called miraculous meditations in the jungle.
At the age of 16, during his nine-month disappearance in a wilderness area of eastern Nepal, Buddhist monks held 24-hour vigils to pray for his safe return.
