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Yoga Pioneer on the Run

54475417_sAuthorities believe that hot yoga founder Bikram Choudhury has hid his assets and fled the country after failing to pay the $7 million he owes in a sexual harassment suit.

ABC News is reporting that a Los Angeles judge has issues a warrant for the arrest of Choudhury, 69, who failed to pay a $7 million judgement against him by his onetime lawyer, Minakshi “Miki” Jafa-Bodden. Choudhury was ordered to pay the judgement last year but has thus far failed to do so and authorities believe he has left the country after hiding his assets.

KABC-TV reports that the warrant allows authorities to arrest him if he’s found in the U.S., if he returns here, or if he’s found in Mexico.

The suit was brought by Jafa-Bodden who was fired by Choudhury after she refused to cover up allegations that Bikram raped and sexually assaulted a yoga student. Her suit contended that the environment in his yoga school was one of rampant misogyny, homophobia, racism, sexual harassment and threats of violence.

Bikram choudhuryChoudhury’s super-ego appears to have been out of control for quite some time. Aside from likening himself to Jesus, Superman and Buddha, the yogi who likes to practice yoga while wearing nothing more than a tiny Speedo has been sued by other women in the past, including a 29 year-old student who claimed he sexually assaulted her and then ruined her yoga career when she continued to resist him.

In Jafa-Bodden’s case, a jury determined that he had unfairly fired her and ordered him to pay nearly

$6.5 million in punitive damages and $924,000 in compensatory damages. If arrested in the U.S. or Mexico, bail has been set at $8 million.

Unfortunately, Choudhury is just one of many yogis who have been seduced by the fame and fortune of the multi-billion dollar yoga industry into thinking they are above the law. Click here to read more about the dark side of this fad.

 

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