Temple leader accused of theft, deception

With its neon green and purple exterior, the Hindu Temple of Georgia looks more like a funhouse than a house of worship.

And police say the Norcross temple’s leader, Annamalai Annamalai, aka “Dr. Commander Selvam,” may be as deceptive as a funhouse mirror.

He has been under investigation by Gwinnett County police since 2006, according to department spokesman Cpl. David Schiralli. Annamalai was arrested Thursday on charges of theft and practicing medicine without a license. He has since been released on $121,400 bond.

“It is a very long and complex case and it is still ongoing,” Schiralli said Monday.

Annamalai, 43, is accused of charging $1,751 to a woman’s credit card without her permission in July. He also charged $14,000 last year to perform a spiritual service for a woman suffering from Crohn’s disease, according to an arrest warrant.

Annamalai’s attorney, Jerry Froelich, said Monday that his client is being badgered by people who disagree with his religion and the way he practices it.

“I think both charges were misleading and I don’t think they provided the magistrate with all the facts or the law,” Froelich said. “I’m looking forward to taking on these charges and I intend to be very aggressive about it.”

Annamalai allegedly shipped the woman an unknown red liquid substance that he claimed was medication and instructed her to take it. He also told the woman to stop taking medication that a licensed physician prescribed for her when she began taking his medicine, the warrant says.

Annamalai, who owns a million-dollar home in Sugarloaf Country Club in Duluth, is not the only temple leader in trouble. A priest, Lakshmanan Viswanathan, was arrested in September for allegedly making false statements to police. He allegedly claimed to have received threatening phone calls on four occasions.

The temple’s Web site prominently features a photograph of a beaming Annamalai clad in a white button-down shirt. The Web site calls Annamalai “a great scholar, who is able to relieve problems from neck pains to all kinds of mental, material stress and conflicts in all walks of our life.”

Police say that Annamalai has portrayed himself to at least one other person as a doctor, and that his alias “Dr. Commander” is misleading.

The Better Business Bureau has recorded two complaints about the Hindu Temple of Georgia, both from individuals who said their credit cards had been overcharged for horoscope readings, temple prayers and ritual services.