How False Memories Almost Destroyed a Family

A British family was on the verge of disintegration due to deception by a fraudster posing as a "healer". The story of Sarah Strutt, a mother slandered by her own daughter, became a real sensation after her interview with the publication Daily Mail.

It all started in 2010, when Sarah's daughter, a talented young artist, returned from Italy and informed her mother that she had started attending sessions with a certain Ann Craig. Craig, who introduced herself as a "healer" and "spiritual mentor," claimed that she only works with "truly special people." She charged an impressive sum for her services — 100 pounds per hour.

At first, Sarah did not see anything suspicious in these sessions. But in 2012, her daughter began to distance herself from family and friends. She broke off her relationship with her boyfriend, closed her social media accounts and stopped answering her mother's calls. In 2014, Sarah received a letter from her daughter in which she informed about the severance of all ties with her family and the change of her name to Hui Hue.

Sarah couldn't figure out what had happened and started her own investigation. She managed to find out that Ann Craig had no psychological education and used her sessions to manipulate patients, forcing them to refuse to communicate with relatives. It turned out that Hui Hue was not the only victim of Craig — many other rich women also fell under her influence.

Craig was eventually arrested for fraud, but was soon released. Sarah, determined not to give up, hired a private investigator and a cult expert to find her daughter and bring her back to her family.

In 2017, Sarah found out that her daughter had accused her of sexual assault.

"I almost laughed because it was so absurd. I just couldn't imagine it," she admitted.

A year after that, Sarah finally found Hui Hue through mutual acquaintances and organized a meeting. During a long conversation, she was able to prove to her daughter that Craig had deceived her by creating false memories.

Meanwhile, Ann Craig has gone into hiding, and her lawyers continue to deny all charges.