Naivasha Couple Arrested After Their 2-month Old Ailing Baby Died While Undergoing Prayers

A middle-aged couple from a village in Naivasha has been arrested by police after their two month old ailing child died while undergoing prayers in one of the clergy’s home.

The couple who hails from the Church of God and which does not believe in hospitals were arrested in Kinungi village for negligence.

This came as it emerged that this was the third child the family which does not believe in hospitals had lost in the last couple of years.

The area has tens of members of the church (Kanitha Wa Ngai) which does not believe in modern medicine but relies on spiritual intervention when sick.

First to be arrested was the mother of the infant after she went to seek a burial permit from the area chief hours after the incident.

According to the Chief Simon Ng’ang’a, cases of negligence among members of the church were on the rise in the area.

He said that they were seeking the religious leader of the church who escaped after learning that police were seeking him in connection with the death.

“We have arrested the husband and the wife in connection with the death and we are waiting for a postmortem report to determine if the death was caused by negligence,” he said.

Ng’ang’a noted that this was the third minor from the family to die while undergoing prayers in the same church after falling ill.

“In the past the family had lost two other minors after ailing and it has emerged that this is due to negligence and they will be charged on court,” he said.

-Anthony Gitonga