Messiahs, shamans and dangerous charlatans - Sects in Mallorca

In Mallorca, he says, it is very common to attract people by offering weekends in nature and getting away from it all. It is usual for there to be a "charismatic guru", a self-proclaimed leader who can be like a shaman. "They are so-called soul healers and professional tricksters. The objective is the family disconnection of the follower, to be isolated and weaker. Ruining him or her financially may be one of the aims, but what they really seek is total control over that person - power."

Some sects, he explains, espouse ecological messages. "They claim that they want to save the planet and that caring for nature is the key, but in reality the goal is to manipulate minds." Evidence of neo-pagan practices has been discovered. In Andratx, Palma and Santa Eugenia, makeshift altars with sacrificed animals have been found. Some, he notes, are of Afro-Caribbean origin.

An expert at a national level in combating sects, Perlado says that a typical sect in Mallorca "combines good vibes, yoga and personal growth". "They can be dressed in white robes and flowers, but they're not like hippies from the '60s. Those who proclaim free love, so in vogue in the sixties, have now changed their terminology. They've updated the message. It's now called transcending attachments and allows for multi-relationships." But some groups in fact demonise sex.

There are drugs, such as ayahuasca, a brewed drink traditionally associated with shamanic practices in the Amazon and which has psychedelic effects. More common, Perlado points out, is to administer drugs to people without their being aware of them.

Leaders of these sects aren't looking for drug addicts. They want idealistic, intelligent people - university students perhaps - who want to change things. There are other profiles, such as vulnerable adolescents, immigrants who feel alone and people who have experienced a breakdown in relationships. Perlado adds that many families in Mallorca have asked him for help as relatives have fallen prey to these networks of messiahs, shamans and dangerous charlatans.