ASA Adjudication on Gabriel DAngelo

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Six mailings from the psychic Gabriel D'Angelo in Switzerland: a. The first mailing detailed how a Tibetan monk had told Gabriel D'Angelo that the recipient was due to receive a large sum of money; text stated " ... May 15th will mark the beginning of sums of MONEY coming in ... More than £20,000, that's for sure ... don't make the mistake of ignoring your Destiny's message”. b. The second mailing detailed how the recipient's family had been cursed since the dark ages and that they had been shunned by luck. Text stated "... I know what I'm telling you might scare you ... but I'm writing to you today because I've got the Supernatural Power and Esoteric Skills needed to destroy this curse on you. I want to give you back your true Destiny ... which is going to start with GREAT HAPPINESS and a FANTASTIC SUM OF MONEY ... MORE THAN £55000! ...". c. The third mailing detailed how the recipient was the heir to the treasure of the Argonauts. Text stated "... you are the Chosen one. The Inheritance of the Argonauts is due to you and you know nothing about it ... Today, I bring you the real PROOF of your forthcoming Fortune ... perhaps even more than 1,000,000 pounds ...". d. The fourth mailing detailed how a visitor from the future had told Gabriel D'Angelo how the recipient would be able to contact that visitor. e. The fifth mailing detailed how the recipient was under a voodoo curse but that Gabriel D'Angelo could offer a way to break it. f. The sixth mailing detailed how Gabriel D'Angelo could help the recipient take advantage of an unusual astrological event and generate great wealth. Text stated " ... Here's what I'm offering you today ... hundreds of thousands of pounds ... Don't make the fatal and irreparable mistake of taking this revelation lightly ...". All the mailings included a form that could be returned to Gabriel D'Angelo with payment for his services.

Issue

The complainant objected that the mailings used an appeal to fear and could mislead and exploit vulnerable recipients.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Gabriel D'Angelo did not respond to the ASAs enquiries.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA was concerned by Gabriel D'Angelos lack of response to the ASA and apparent disregard for the Code, which was a breach of CAP Code clause 2.6 (Non-response). We reminded him of his obligations under the Code and told him to respond promptly in future.

In the absence of any response to support the claims made in the mailings, we considered that the approach used was not justified. We also considered that the mailings, particularly claims such as "don't make the mistake of ignoring your Destiny's message"; "I'm writing to you today because I've got the Supernatural Power and Esoteric Skills needed to destroy this curse on you" and "Don't make the fatal and irreparable mistake of taking this revelation lightly" constituted an undue appeal to fear, were misleading and could exploit vulnerable people.

The mailings breached CAP Code clauses 2.6 (Non-response), 6.1 (Honesty), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 9.1 (Fear and distress).

Action

The mailings must not appear again in their current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)