A small ad that's been running in the Reader in recent weeks has a message for anyone with a big heart, a venturesome spirit, and an underdeveloped sense of skepticism. "Volunteer in Africa. . . . Work with HIV/AIDS orphans/outreach," it says. "No experience necessary." There's mention of an upcoming informational meeting, and the curious are provided with a Massachusetts phone number, an e-mail address, and a URL. Intrigued, I e-mailed Humana People to People, the organization that placed the ad, asking what I could expect if I applied.

Ten years ago the Guardian first raised doubts about the Danish organisation behind a chain of used-clothes charity shops. Now Mogens Amdi Petersen, the mysterious, Svengali-like figure behind the organisation is to stand trial in a GBP15m fraud case.

Evening News (England), May 15, 2003

The Copenhagen Post (Denmark), Feb. 7, 2003

Tvind Alert, Jan. 8, 2003

Mogens Amdi Petersen, founder of the controversial Tvind schools empire, who has been a virtual recluse for decades, is finally back on Danish soil after being successfully extradited from the USA where he was arrested seven months ago.

The Copenhangen Post (Denmark), Sep. 15, 2002

The Copenhagen Post (Denmark), Aug. 30, 2002

The Copenhagen Post (Denmark), Aug. 30, 2002

AP, Aug. 22, 2002

AP, Aug. 22, 2002

Supreme Tvind leader, Mogens Amdi Petersen, has been arrested by police in the United States. This has been confirmed by Holstebro chief of police, Jens Kaasgaard.

In 1970, a group of Danish hippies set out on a mission to save the world. Thirty years later, some of the young acolytes they recruited claim the group has become a cult, amassing riches in the hundreds of millions of dollars under the direction of an elusive and mysterious founder. Now, with recruiting efforts reaching into the United States, ex-members say the mission is no longer to save the world but to conquer it. North American headquarters? Massachusetts.
Tvind:
Tvind: