'Tibetan Healer' Pleads Guilty to Sexual Assault of Patient

Vista, CA — A registered sex offender who claimed to be a "Tibetan healer" pleaded guilty Tuesday to sexually assaulting a woman who hired him for massage services.

Vasiliy "Ardi" Galashev, 61, will be sentenced on Sept. 20 to four years in prison, according to Deputy District Attorney Kate Flaherty.

He pleaded guilty to sexual battery on the day his preliminary hearing was to go forward, she said.

In May 2015, a woman told Escondido police that she was sexually assaulted by Galashev, who called himself "Master Ardi" and claimed to be a "seventh-generation Tibetan healer," Detective Jeff Udvarhelyi said.

In November, crime lab personnel determined that DNA evidence provided by the victim and suspect were a match, according to Udvarhelyi. Galashev was arrested in December.

—City News Service

(Image via Shutterstock)