Authorities received multiple abuse warnings on Tubbergen sect but took limited action
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A detailed investigation into the controversial Pater Pio sect near Tubbergen reveals that authorities received at least 19 warnings of suspected abuses during the sect’s existence. Despite some interventions and a conviction in 1996, the sect has continued to operate, with devastating consequences—particularly for two girls aged 11 and 12 who remained trapped within the group until their rescue in 2022, RTV Oost and De Twentsche Courant Tubantia report.
Municipal records obtained through a Freedom of Information request by RTV Oost and Tubantia show that the Tubbergen municipality was aware of sect-like activities on the farm. In December 2019, police and municipal officials raided the farm, investigating illegal construction as well as “sect-like activities.”
During the raid, authorities found a patient with ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, who was being treated with prayer healing. The patient was interviewed extensively, but because he chose alternative treatment, no legal action was taken. He died days later.
The Pater Pio sect, a spiritual community led by Trees P., claims direct communication through a rosary with the soul of the late Italian saint Padre Pio, who died in 1968. Trees, nicknamed “the Twentse Jomanda,” controls all activities at the sect farm.
The Public Prosecution Service had reportedly been informed as early as 2016 about three complaints from former sect members by organizations such as Veilig Thuis and the Tubbergen municipality. These complaints, along with the 2019 raid, did not lead to further prosecution or enforcement.
Warnings about the sect have been raised repeatedly for decades. Church authorities, both Catholic and Protestant, warned about Trees as early as 1993. Pastor Theo van der Sman actively cautioned churchgoers from the pulpit about her dubious practices and informed police and prosecutors. In 1996, Trees and some associates were convicted of abuse, including cutting “devil’s ears” from a psychiatric patient. The daughter of Trees, Evelien Vaags, shared detailed testimony about being drawn into the sect as a child.
Content retrieved from: https://nltimes.nl/2025/05/31/authorities-received-multiple-abuse-warnings-tubbergen-sect-took-limited-action.
