A Canadian man has sued the Orlando-based Soul Quest Church of Mother Earth after he allegedly consumed toxic hallucinogens on a weekend retreat with the church, then subsequently had a seizure and lost consciousness.
According to the complaint filed on March 25 in the Orange County Circuit Court, plaintiff Kevin Rupchand went on a retreat at the church in March of 2017.
Rupchand says that while on the retreat he paid hundreds of dollars for three instances of ayahuasca consumption; ayahuasca is a hallucinogenic tea that contains a high quantity of the hallucinogen DMT.
The plaintiff paid additional money to participate in a Katawa session; Katawa is a poisonous tree bark extract that the church and its executives claimed to be effective in treating medical issues, according to the lawsuit.
Soul Quest allegedly knew of the hallucinogenic and toxic nature of the substances and administered them to the plaintiff anyway. The church did not have medical staff on site to monitor the participants as they ingested the substances.
Defendants include Soul Quest Church of Mother Earth, Soul Quest Ayahuasca Church of Mother Earth Retreat and Wellness Center, president and corporate Christopher Young and employee Jyana Ashuar.
The defendants are accused of negligence and strict liability. Rupchand is represented by Ronald H. Watson of Eustis.