Father wins civil suit against dance cult leader who drove daughter to suicide | Daily Mail Online

A heartbroken father spent six years and $500,000 in an international court battle to prove that his daughter's Japanese guru, a master of the 'dance of darkness,' turned her into a sex slave, plied her with drugs and was responsible for her suicide.

Tibor Stern filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Katsura Kan, who was teaching Butoh, a form of dance in which students were told to 'wallow in the darkness of their soul,' at a college in Boulder, Colorado, according to the lawsuit. 

Kan, whose real name is Terugoshi Kotoura and is believed to be aged 71, was found liable last month for the suicide of his student, Sharon Stern, by a Florida circuit court. A trial will take place in a few months to determine the damages. 

Tibor Stern, 70, of Hollywood, Florida, described his victory as 'bittersweet.'

'I thought it would bring much more closure,' he told DailyMailTV. 'I had no doubt we were going to win; the evidence was overwhelming. But I didn't jump for joy.'

'Our daughter is not coming back. But hopefully our effort will save some lives. That was the whole idea.'

Father wins civil suit against dance cult leader who drove daughter to suicide | Daily Mail Online

ADDENDUM::Statement from FACT dated May 22,,,

Dear Friends and Followers of FACT,

WE GOT HIM!!!! Katsura Kan has been served in Bangkok, Thailand on May 10, 2014 at 8:25 A.M. Katsura, you can run but you can not hide from justice. All the families, parents and loved ones that are taken by narcissistic psychopaths and sociopaths will have their day in court. Every inquiry to us for help will be answered. We will make sure that no school or University will brush under the carpet all abuses and allegations. I believe that Naropa University in Boulder Colorado, bears certain responsibilities for hiring Katsura Kan, a well known self serving womanizer who has exploited many of his female students. Our lawyer in Denver approached Naropa for a dialogue and truth finding in order to implement safety, but our efforts were rejected by Naropa. My heart is broken to see all of those families suffering and dealing with tragedies by no other than their own teachers and the sad part is that the schools are providing the platform. With our efforts and your help, we will make a change. Watch out psychopaths’…Return our kids home! We will publish on our black list, all known documented cult leaders and manipulators who are holding our kids. It is high time to return our kids to their families. This is your chance!

Find below the documented evidence of Katsura Kan’s serving. I will make sure that he will spend some time in jail. Perhaps there he will have enough time to think about what he has done. I will not stop short of that.

Tibor Stern
On behalf of Sharoni Stern estate

Sharon Stern 'driven to suicide' by Katsura Kan who made her his 'sex slave' | Mail Online

Cult like thinking and indoctrination doesn't necessarily equate to a strict "religious" setting as evidenced by this article. The use of mind-control tactics and mental abuse to exploit and manipulate for personal gain can be seen outside the church as well.

Butoh in and of itself though a bit avant-garde and darkly themed is not the issue in the case. As Butoh is dance, it is expression it "is Japan's most startling cultural export does not aim to charm. Instead, it sets out to assault the senses. The hallmarks of this theater of protest include full body paint (white or dark or gold), near or complete nudity, shaved heads, grotesque costumes, clawed hands, rolled-up eyes and mouths opened in silent screams."

"There are about 30 soloists and dance companies, most of them based in Tokyo, that share the Butoh esthetic. To take audiences on a backward journey to primordial states of being,,,."

Did Butoh lead to Stern's death? IMHO no, Kan's cult-like tactics are to blame., but in and odd sort of way it may have contributed. Think of a runners high, when one is breaking through that wall of pain, that is when one is most vulnerable to injury. I know when I drum, when I "let loose," I am in a whole different world. Same with meditation. Kan took advantage of that.
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A married woman from Florida was allegedly driven to commit suicide by a 'cultish' Japanese dancer who made her his 'physical and sexual slave and plied her with drugs', her devastated family claimed today.

Sharon Stern, 32, of Hollywood, Florida, was drawn into butoh, a Japanese style of contemporary dance also called the 'dance of darkness' which explores the taboo themes.

Her family claim the married yoga teacher lost her sanity and committed suicide, allegedly driven to despair by her butoh master, Katsura Kan.

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'Katsura Kan brainwashed her against her family and her life,' her heartbroken father told MailOnline, echoing the claims he made in the lawsuit.

He alleged: 'He made her forget everything that was happy about life, and told her she needed to experience pain and suffering, until he had full control over her. She called him god.'

The lawsuit, which Kan has not responded to, alleges that Kan 'systematically stripped away Stern's human dignity, free will and self-respect by subjugating Stern to Kan's total control.'

[,,,]
According to Tibor Stern, 'Kan's teachings were based on pain, suffering and death; on the denial and erasure of the self; on the destruction of one's ego; on the denial of one's family and friends; and ultimately on the complete erasure of everything you know and all that you are as the only way to become a true butoh master.'

[,,,]
The Stern family brought Sharon home to Florida and for three weeks tried to convince her to enter a mental health facility. After suffering about ten psychotic attacks, she finally agreed.

Two days before she was due to check in, Kan reached Sharon by email and Skype.

'He told her that he didn't believe she was sick and that she should run away from her husband and family,' Tibor Stern said. 'He even went so far as to send her a prepaid ticket to Thailand to meet him.'

Kan urged Sharon to 'escape from your family,' so she snuck out and flew to Thailand in September 2011. When Kan saw how sick Sharon was, Tibor Stern said, he soon sent her back to San Francisco.

Sharon's family then brought her to Boulder, Colorado for psychiatric care. Even under care, she twice attempted suicide.

Sharon's psychiatrists and psychologists, her family, and the family's lawyers all demanded that Kan leave her alone. But they claim Kan refused to let her go.

Sharon Stern 'driven to suicide' by Katsura Kan who made her his 'sex slave' | Mail Online

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