The Horrifying Tragedy of the Lathlain Family

There were six people, all related, in a bare country house on the sun-baked outskirts of a remote Australian town. On the night of October 21, 2012, a 15-year-old girl named Elise knelt, trembling, at the center of a sagging living-room rug. Her face was streaked with tears and dust. Four adults and one other teenager stood in a tight, silent circle around her, their hands clasped, their eyes squeezed shut. In the dim light, the only sound was the frantic hum of insects outside the wire-mesh window, and the soft, rhythmic chanting that had begun to fill the room.

The people in that house were the Broughton family and their cousin, Sophie. Elise was the daughter of Michael and Cherie Broughton. Cherie was a fervent follower of an obscure spiritual movement that had grown through online forums and YouTube videos. Michael, Elise’s father, had recently been laid off from his job as a mechanic at the local mine. Sophie, age 13, was Cherie’s niece and had lived with the family since her own parents’ divorce. The family had moved from the suburbs of Brisbane to their isolated rental near the edge of the Outback two years earlier. The move followed Michael’s job loss and Cherie’s determination to live “off the grid” and embrace the teachings of a self-proclaimed spiritual leader known online as “The Shepherd.”

The Shepherd’s beliefs mixed elements of apocalyptic Christianity, self-purification rituals, and conspiracy theories about government surveillance and spiritual warfare. He encouraged his online followers to withdraw from mainstream society, fast for days, and perform elaborate prayers to “cast out the shadow.” Cherie spent hours in front of her laptop, streaming the Shepherd’s live sermons and reading his posts aloud to her children. She sold the family’s television, banned secular music, and began fasting for days at a time. Michael, adrift and desperate for answers, followed along. Their oldest son, Daniel, resented his isolation but was forced to help tend the garden and care for their goats.

In the weeks leading up to the crime, Cherie claimed Elise was “infected” by a demon spirit that threatened the family’s salvation. Elise had grown withdrawn, stopped eating, and sometimes shouted at her mother. She told her cousin Sophie that she wished she could go back to school and see her friends. Cherie was convinced that worldly influences had “entered” her daughter and that only extreme measures could save her.

On October 18, 2012, Cherie sent an email to her online prayer group, describing Elise’s behavior and asking for “intercession.” A forum member replied, urging her to “confront the evil directly.” Over the next three days, Cherie, Michael, and Sophie fasted and prayed. Cherie instructed Daniel and Sophie not to let Elise out of their sight. She blocked the house’s only landline with a chair.

The morning of October 21 began with a feverish energy. Cherie announced to the family that “the day of casting out” had come. She ordered Michael to fill a blue plastic bucket with water and place it next to the living room couch. She handed Daniel her battered paperback Bible and told him to read Psalm 91 aloud. Sophie was told to fetch all the crosses from the bedrooms and lay them out in a circle around the rug. Elise tried to run, but Michael blocked her way. Cherie and Sophie wrestled her to the ground and forced her to her knees.

For the next six hours, Cherie led a ritual she called “purification.” She poured water over Elise’s head and shouted prayers, demanding the demon “reveal itself.” Michael and Daniel held Elise’s arms. Sophie pressed a cross to Elise’s forehead and chanted along with Cherie. Elise screamed for help, but Cherie slapped her and told her to be silent. At noon, Cherie tied a scarf around her daughter’s mouth. Daniel began to cry, but Michael told him to keep reading from the Bible. Cherie forced Elise to swallow salt and more water, saying it would “drive out the poison.” Elise began gasping and retching. Her cries weakened, and her body slumped.

By 2:30 p.m., Elise was unconscious. Cherie declared that the “spirit” was weakening and ordered the others to keep praying. Michael poured another bucket of water over Elise’s head, but she did not move. Sophie noticed Elise’s lips were turning blue and tried to loosen the scarf, but Cherie shouted at her to stop. Daniel approached his sister and felt for a pulse, but he could not find one. He began to sob and told Cherie that Elise wasn’t breathing. Cherie told him to pray harder.

At 4:15 p.m., Daniel ran from the house and flagged down a passing farm truck on the gravel road. The driver, a schoolteacher named Greg Henson, stopped and listened as Daniel, shaking and tearful, told him, “My sister’s dead. They killed her.” Henson drove Daniel back to the house and, seeing Elise’s lifeless body, immediately called emergency services on his mobile phone.

Ambulance officers arrived just after 5 p.m. and pronounced Elise dead at the scene. The officers described the home as “chaotic,” with religious pamphlets, crosses, and empty water jugs scattered around the room. Elise’s body showed bruises on her arms, ligature marks on her wrists, and signs of asphyxiation. Police arrived twenty minutes later. They took Cherie, Michael, Daniel, and Sophie into custody. The youngest child, a seven-year-old girl, was found hiding under a bed and was taken into protective care.

The investigation was led by Detective Inspector Fiona Marsh from the Queensland Police Service. Marsh’s team interviewed all family members separately. Daniel told police, “Mum said the demon was inside Elise. She wouldn’t stop. She said it was God’s will.” Sophie admitted that she had been afraid but had done what Cherie told her because she believed her aunt. Michael stated, “I thought we were saving her. I didn’t want to hurt her.” Detectives found Cherie’s online correspondence with The Shepherd and dozens of handwritten notes describing “steps for purification.”

A forensic pathologist performed an autopsy on Elise’s body. The pathologist determined the cause of death was a combination of asphyxiation, associated with forced ingestion of salt and water, and blunt force trauma to the head and neck. Toxicology tests showed high levels of sodium chloride and severe dehydration. Investigators concluded Elise had died from a form of “ritual abuse consistent with cult-related purification practices.” Police seized Cherie’s laptop and found evidence of her ongoing communication with the online cult leader.

Detective Marsh coordinated with the Queensland Department of Child Safety to interview the seven-year-old and determine the extent of abuse in the household. The child stated that Cherie had performed similar “cleansing” ceremonies on her and Sophie, but never to the same extent as with Elise. The department placed the two surviving children with foster carers.

As news of the crime spread, journalists from national outlets descended on the small town. The story made front-page headlines across Australia: “Demon Purge Claims Teenager’s Life,” one read. The Shepherd’s online presence was quickly traced to a man living in a northern suburb of Sydney. Police raided his home but found no evidence that he had directly ordered the attack, though he was questioned and released.

The trial of Cherie and Michael Broughton began in March 2013 in the Brisbane Supreme Court. Both were charged with murder and with causing grievous bodily harm. Sophie, due to her age and the coercive control exerted by Cherie, was charged with manslaughter. Daniel was treated as a witness. The prosecution called child welfare workers, forensic experts, and digital analysts. They presented evidence of Cherie’s months-long indoctrination, her withdrawal from mainstream society, and her belief in supernatural evil inhabiting her daughter. Michael’s defense argued he had acted out of love and fear, under his wife’s influence.

The jury deliberated for four days. On April 18, 2013, Cherie Broughton was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum non-parole period of 20 years. Michael Broughton was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 15 years. Sophie was given a suspended three-year sentence and placed under the supervision of child protection services until age 18. The Shepherd was not charged with a crime, but his website was removed, and authorities issued a nationwide warning about “dangerous spiritual practices and online cult activity.”

In the months following the verdict, the Queensland Department of Child Safety launched a review of online cult influence and expanded its outreach programs in rural areas. State government officials allocated $2 million for new education and support services in isolated communities, with a focus on mental health and cult awareness. The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists published a report on the dangers of “cyber-cults,” and called for a national task force to track extremist online groups.

Cherie Broughton’s case became the first in Australia to result in a murder conviction for a death caused by ritual abuse directly linked to online cult indoctrination. The judge, in sentencing, stated, “This court recognizes the profound danger posed by spiritual leaders who, from a distance, manipulate vulnerable families.”

The police investigation revealed that more than 150 Australian households had registered on The Shepherd’s online forums. Of those, 17 families had withdrawn their children from school, and 11 had reported performing some form of “spiritual purification.” The Queensland Police established a special unit to monitor online radicalization of isolated families.

The case exposed major gaps in Australia’s rural mental health support and child protection systems. The Department of Communications reported a 38% increase in reports of harmful online content in the year after the crime. Hotline calls to cult-support charities more than doubled, with more than 1,400 calls logged in the six months following the trial.

The coroner’s report on Elise’s death called for mandatory reporting of online cult activity by teachers and social workers. National broadcasters produced a documentary series on the dangers of internet-based spiritual movements. The Australian Psychological Society issued new guidelines for identifying and intervening with families at risk of cult involvement.

Elise Broughton’s funeral was held in mid-November 2012. Fewer than 20 people attended. Child protection authorities established a trust for Elise’s surviving younger sister, using funds raised by community organizations. Elise’s school in Brisbane planted a tree in her memory.

In 2014, a state parliamentary inquiry heard evidence from digital safety advocates, cult survivors, and forensic psychologists. The inquiry found that internet-based cults were growing in regional communities and recommended the creation of a national cult-awareness curriculum for all Australian schools.

The Broughton case revealed the potent combination of online radicalization, rural isolation, and family dysfunction. It showed how digital cult leaders, even from thousands of kilometers away, could exert deadly influence over at-risk families. The Australian Institute of Criminology reported that, following Elise’s murder, at least four other states had launched investigations into child neglect cases with suspected ritual elements.

Elise’s autopsy revealed a fatal sodium level of 190 mmol/L—more than twice the normal upper limit for her age. Deaths from forced salt ingestion are extremely rare; only three other such cases had ever been confirmed in Australia by 2012.

The Shepherd, whose real name was never publicly disclosed, closed his website within weeks of the verdict. In an anonymous post made before the site went dark, he wrote, “The world has rejected truth, but the shadow will remain.” Detectives continued to monitor online forums for new aliases linked to his teachings, but he was never charged with a crime.

Years after Elise’s death, police reported that the Broughton house remained vacant. Local legends told of strange lights and chanting at the property long after the family had left. The most specific evidence in the case—a series of emails between Cherie and The Shepherd—was entered into the public record, with more than 200 pages of correspondence printed and stored by Queensland authorities.

The Queensland State Library’s digital archive now includes an anonymized copy of the Broughton ritual abuse case file, running over 1,500 pages. This file documents every step of the investigation, the psychometric assessments of each family member, and the transcript of Cherie’s correspondence with online cult members—making it the largest public collection on a cult-related crime in modern Australian history.