A fraudster posing as a shamanic faith healer claimed to have warned Princess Diana of her imminent death as she attempted to groom a new victim, a court heard.
The prosecution claims “bogus” faith healer Juliette D’Souza, of Perrin’s Lane, Hampstead – who is being tried on 23 counts of fraud and obtaining property by deception – boasted of celebrity clients including Diana and music mogul Simon Cowell to win the trust of her targets.
One witness, Patricia Leckie, told the jury that she had visited D’Souza in 1998, the year after Diana’s death in a car crash in Paris, while seeking help for a skin problem.
Ms Leckie, who referred to diary entries about the encounter, told Blackfriars Crown Court on Thursday: “She wanted to make sure that I knew she was a genuine healer and had powers, that she could heal me.”
Like many of the witnesses, Ms Leckie told of her amazement that D’Souza seemed to know a lot about her, including details of her fiancée and brother.
“I was mesmerised,” she said. “I’m a bit sceptical about that sort of thing, but in that situation, I thought ‘something’s going on here’. I just wanted to know what was coming next.”
But Ms Leckie told the jury that her scepticism returned when the defendant began to talk about the tragic princess.
“She continued by telling me that Princes Diana used to come to see her and the press never knew,” she said.
“When she last saw her, she warned her she would die if she continued seeing Dodi [Fayed], and would never see her sons again.
“It didn’t ring true to me. At that point, I just got up and decided to leave.”
The trial continues.
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