Warrant issued for alleged sham masseur Sean Connell after skipping Heidelberg court

An arrest warrant has been issued for a Melbourne masseur — accused of claiming his lymphatic drainage massages could cure cancer — after he skipped court for “poor dental hygiene”.

Alleged Sham healer - Sean Connell with one of the "energy beds" used in his treatments

A massage therapist who allegedly claimed he could cure cancer with lymphatic massages has a warrant issued for his arrest after he skipped court again because of his “poor dental hygiene”.

Energy Wellness’s Sean Connell was due to face the Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court on Monday relating to a litany of charges including failure to comply with interim prohibition order/prohibition order.

In February 2023, a public warning was issued against the masseur by the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner after he was banned from offering the service to avoid “a serious risk to the life, health, safety or welfare of a person or public”.

It came after the South Belgrave and South Morang practitioner allegedly claimed he could cure cancer and motor neurone disease through lymphatic drainage massages and also allegedly spread misinformation about Covid-19 and vaccines.

Sean Connell

On Monday, a prosecutor for the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner told the court Mr Connell had emailed claiming he was too unwell to attend after having a tooth extracted and contracting Covid.

The court heard Mr Connell said his “bed was like a swimming pool of sweat” but he failed to provide a medical certificate to substantiate his claims.

“We are requesting the court to issue a warrant against — we don't believe he will respond at all your honour,” she said.

MagistrateJohn Bentley said this was the second time Mr Connell had used a tooth extraction as a reason to skip court.

“He clearly seems to have poor dental hygiene,” Mr Bentley said.

“A warrant will be issued.”

The matter will return to court at a later date.

The Herald Sun previously reported Mr Connell had been under investigation by the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner since October 2021.

In 2023, the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner Adjunct Professor Bernice Redley said the safety of Victorians was the regulator’s “No. 1 priority”.

Prior to the public warning in 2023, Mr Connell had told the Herald Sun he would protest the ban, claiming his methods were based on science.

“Everything I talk about has been medically and scientifically proven from medical textbooks,” he said.

“I have hundreds of very happy clients. The only way to remove toxins from the body is the lymphatic system.

“Inflammation is the cause of everything and once you remove that, the body can heal itself.”

Mr Connell has promoted “healing modalities” to aid more than 40 conditions ranging from arthritis and asthma, to cancer and carpal tunnel syndrome, to ulcerated intestines and ulcers.

Massages are combined with periods on an “energy bed” and feature pulsed electromagnetic frequency devices.