Czech Cult Leader Arrested in Philippines

Guru Jára, subject of an international manhunt, is wanted in connection with the rape of 300+ women

Dave Park

Written by Dave Park Published on 18.05.2015 11:14:58 (updated on 18.05.2015) Reading time: 1 minute

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44-year-old Jaroslav Dobeš, who fled the Czech Republic in 2007 and has spent nine years in hiding, was arrested on Saturday on Siargao Island in the Philippines.

Better known as Guru Jára, Dobeš ran a convent known as Poetrie in the Zlín region from 2002 until 2007.

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There, he treated hundreds of women seeking help through his method of “odháčkování” (“unhooking”) – which was little more than having non-consensual sex with them. He charged the women tens of thousands of crowns for this treatment.

Blesk reported last year that the total number of women that Dobeš “treated” was over 3000. He has been the subject of an international manhunt since fleeing the country in 2007.

In 2014, Dobeš was convicted in absentia of eight counts of rape by a Czech court. He and an assistant, Barbora Plášková, had already been living in Asia for seven years, where they are believed to have set up a new sect.

At the time, Dobeš made international headlines, including this write-up in the Daily Mail. He has been the “subject of an international manhunt in connection with the rape of over 300 women,” according to one report.

Now, however, he has been arrested in the Philippines based on a deportation order that was issued in 2005. He will presumably be extradited to the Czech Republic, where he will face sentencing on his 2014 conviction and possibly further charges. 

Dobeš still has followers in the Czech Republic, and maintains a presence on the internet through his own website and social media accounts. He has recently released a book entitled Casanova Sútra, and an album of songs including the single “Threesome with Albert”:

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UPDATE: CNN is also reporting on the story, complete with Dobeš’ mugshot from the Philippine National Police:

Czech Cult Leader Arrested in Philippines

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