A Kenyan court has acquitted Gilbert Deya, a self-styled preacher known for claiming that he could help infertile couples conceive “miracle babies” through prayer. The court cited insufficient evidence presented by the prosecutors in the case.
Gilbert Deya, a former stonemason who moved from Kenya to London in the mid-1990s, was accused of stealing five children between 1999 and 2004 to support his claims. However, Senior Principal Magistrate Robison Ondieki found the 86-year-old preacher not guilty, ruling that the prosecution had failed to provide enough evidence linking Deya to the charges.
Deya, whose Gilbert Deya Ministries had churches in various cities in the UK, was extradited from Britain to Kenya in 2017 after a lengthy legal battle to remain in the UK. Alongside his wife Mary, Deya had claimed that their prayers could enable infertile and post-menopausal women to conceive within four months, without the need for intercourse.
Prosecutors, on the other hand, argued that the “miracle babies” were stolen, primarily from impoverished neighbourhoods in Nairobi. However, Deya’s lawyer, John Swaka, stated that the charges were baseless and could not withstand legal scrutiny.
“He is delighted and very happy. He has no squabbles with anyone and will go back to serving the Lord,” Swaka told AFP.
The controversy surrounding Deya began in 2004 when a British coroner discovered that a baby named Sarah, who had died at three weeks old, was not biologically related to her alleged parents. The mother had been told she was infertile and had travelled to Nairobi, where she claimed to have given birth. However, DNA tests proved otherwise.
Deya’s claims and subsequent legal battle brought attention to the issue of unregulated religious outfits in Kenya. The country, predominantly Christian, is home to thousands of churches, including those led by self-proclaimed pastors with no theological education.
The recent discovery of bodies linked to a Kenyan cult practising starvation rituals to “meet Jesus Christ” has further raised concerns about the need for increased regulation of religious organizations in the East African nation. Authorities have found nearly 400 bodies in the Shakahola forest on the Kenyan coast, and the self-proclaimed cult leader, Pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, is currently in police custody.
