Couple held for selling ‘magical’ Elmo dolls

A Taiwan couple was arrested after being accused of posing as Tantric Buddhist masters and persuading their believers to buy blessed dolls of the Sesame Street character Elmo to take home and worship, local media reported on Friday.

Lin Pin, 56, and Yang Mei-chiao, 53, were taken into custody on charges of fraud, the Apple Daily newspaper said. The couple ran a Buddhist shrine in Taoyuan county with Lin allegedly claiming he was a high-ranking Buddhist monk in a previous life and had powers to heal the sick. Police said they confiscated Elmo dolls, holy water and elixir pills that the couple sold to their more than 100 followers.

The authorities also found accounting records showing the suspects collected 100 million Taiwan dollars (U$3.4 million) from their activities.