Latest news with #Naiyahmi
Metro
5 days ago
- Health
- Metro
Aunt of child who died after parents put him on vegan diet speaks out
The sister of a woman who became tied up in an 'obscure religious movement' and obsessed with 'clean eating' – and whose severely malnourished toddler son died – has expressed her regret at their estranged relationship. Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah, 43, and her husband Tai were sentenced in December 2024 to a total of 44 years following the death of their three-year-old son, Abiyah, in 2020. Abiyah's body was found behind a terraced house in Birmingham in 2022, where they had previously lived. Both parents had denied neglect, causing or allowing the death of a child and peverting the course of justice. Naiyahmi's sister, Cassie Rowe, 47, has now told the story of how her sister became ostracised – as well as the moment Cassie voiced concern after noticing the toddler had vanished from his mother's social media posts. Tai and Naiyahmi were said to be members of a religious movement called the Royal Ahayah's Witness, developing their own beliefs by blending elements of West African religion with New Age mysticism. The couple lived off grid and by their own laws, claiming to have renounced their citizenship. Tai, a former medical genetics student before quitting the field, styled himself as the head of a fictional 'kingdom'. Their homes were in squalor and the family survived on a restrictive vegan diet. The court heard the parents prioritised their 'distorted system of beliefs' over the welfare of their child, who became severely malnourished. Following his death, they kept his body in their bed for eight days in the hope he would be reincarnated, before embalming him using frankincense and myrrh and performing a ritualistic burial in their garden in Handsworth. His body revealed he had a host of health problems at the time of his death, including bone fractures, rickets, anaemia, stunted growth and severe dental decay. Experts suggested if he died from a respiratory illness – as his parents claimed – the effects of malnutrition would have been a 'more than minimal' cause of his death. Cassie said she voiced concerns to her mother when her estranged sister Naiyahmi stopped posting pictures of her 'lovely' nephew on social media. 'I just assumed that it was to do with not wanting [him] on social media anymore,' she told the Daily Mail. Cassie and Naiyahmi's mother suggested Cassie reach out to her sister. Cassie resisted and said she did not want to be 'dragged' into Naiyahmi's turbulent relationship again – after Naiyahmi had left and then rekindled her relationship with Tai. Cassie said: 'I'm very empathetic and I [would] just get dragged back in, and I didn't want to. I was dealing with my own health issues at the time. 'I just think my sister had messed us about so many times, everybody was just kind of fed up with her at this point and nobody wanted to get involved. 'Obviously, had we known this was going to happen…it's just something that you don't expect to ever happen.' Around the time Naiyahmi stopped posting about Abiyah, Cassie also posted about her health difficulties. Naiyahmi responded, asking about Cassie's health and sharing her own health woes. 'She started telling me that she was going through some health issues and it was some spiritual thing. 'But that was after Abiyah had died. I didn't know when she reached out to me. 'I've looked back [through] my communication with her and I'm like, but, she'd spoken to me after he died and she said nothing.' Cassie also stated she regretted helping Naiyahmi to get back in touch with Tai, following a separation. The couple rekindled their relationship at Abiyah's first birthday, after Cassie had help Naiyahmi raise Abiyah as a single mother for around a year. 'I'd let her invite his dad to the birthday party,' she said. 'I was trying to do the right thing.' Naiyahmi and Tai began dating in 2015. Naiyahmi had been a devout Christian at the time, and Cassie said Tai had seemed 'very polite' and 'normal'. Soon, the pair began sharing on social media that they were involved in a 'niche religious group' and within months, Naiyahmi became estranged from her family. 'We started seeing posts on social media where they were denouncing the Western world, and they didn't agree with interacial relationships. 'I think that's what caused the problem with us as a family because we're quite diverse. We've all got mixed race children, so it was a bit of a shock. And we didn't attend the wedding.' She added: 'Obviously, I was concerned because this is my sister and we tried to intervene, but she just kind of pushed us all away. 'She was just like, 'No, I'm marrying him and that's it'.' 'I've seen her in relationships where she's completely changed her whole personality. So, for me, it wasn't anything new. 'To see her following somebody else, I was like, 'Oh, there she goes again,' but I didn't expect it to go as far as it did. 'I know why she was doing it. He made her feel special and that's what she always looked for. 'He was heavily into being proud to be black, and being proud of African heritage. And so, I think that made her feel beautiful, as well.' In 2016, Naiyahmi arrived on her family's doorstep heavily pregnant and 'shockingly thin'. She told them her husband had sent her home because they had fallen out and he had 'some of his god's work to do'. She recalled her fury at both parents: 'I was angry at him and I was angry at her as well because I've children and I do everything to make sure they're healthy and they're safe. 'I kind of had a go at her a little bit. I was like, 'I know they are your beliefs, but they have got you into this position'. 'And she was just reciting scriptures and things. It was almost like she was there but not there. 'She was just smiling at me and I'm thinking, 'Where is my sister gone, this isn't my sister'.' Naiyahmi stayed with her family for around a year after Abiyah's birth, spending six months with Cassie. Speaking of her sister's time back with the family, she said: 'She was a doting mother, I'd even say that she was overprotective. 'She was still vegan but they were eating a good diet and she's started wearing makeup again, she took her headscarf off. 'She was going to playgroups, she'd come out with me and my friends. She never left [Abiyah] with anybody.' Following the rekindling of her marriage, Naiyahmi moved out of her sister's home and into the property in Handsworth, where Abiyah's body was discovered. She entirely cut contact with her family. Cassie only received an update on her sister when Abiyah's remains were found. 'I don't think it really sank in straight away,' she said. 'The family were all trying to figure out what had happened, and it was difficult. More Trending 'We fell out as a family because some people were sympathising and there were others who were just, like, 'No, she's done wrong'. 'So, it's been very difficult to navigate because how do you navigate something like this? That's happened to a family member, by another family member.' Cassie is raising money via a GoFundMe to pay for a headstone for Abiyah, so the family have 'something that lasts' to remember him. Remebering him, she said: 'He was very timid, and just a lovely child. I just want something that reflects who he was, in the short time that he was on this earth.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Prison officer admits having an 'inappropriate relationship' with inmate MORE: Girl, 16, and boys aged 14 and 15 arrested over death of man on Isle of Sheppey MORE: Aston Villa fan moons judge in court after he jails her for slashing Birmingham supporter
Telegraph
04-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Boy, 3, starved by vegans was failed by officials ‘afraid of being branded racist'
London-born Tai, a medical genetics graduate who also used the first name Tai-Zamarai, and former shop worker Naiyahmi shunned mainstream society and left Abiyah's body buried at their property in Handsworth, Birmingham, when they were evicted in March 2022. A two-month trial at Coventry Crown Court heard the couple had 'invented' a belief system featuring aspects of Igbo culture that Tai, who grew up in both Nigeria and Peckham in south-east London, adapted to form a legal system he called 'slick law'. The court heard that they lived off the generosity of others, occupying at one point a shipping container and a caravan in the Somerset area. A review into his family's contact with authorities has found there was a lack of curiosity about how his parents' culture and lifestyle might have affected his wellbeing, warning that 'the safeguarding of children being impacted by harmful cultural practice is paramount'. The review, published by Birmingham Safeguarding Children Partnership (BSCP) suggested that a culture of fear of being branded racist and discriminatory had contributed to the failure. It warned that while navigating race, ethnicity, culture and beliefs 'can be challenging' for those working in child safeguarding, there is a need for them to be 'confident to ask questions about different cultures and belief systems without fear of being perceived as discriminatory'. Kevin Ball, the report author, added: 'If any family engages in cultural practices which are harmful to children, this must not be overlooked, and the safeguarding of children being impacted by harmful cultural practice is paramount.' The review, published on Wednesday, noted that Abiyah 'was only ever seen by a small number of professionals during his lifetime, and for a limited time only'. According to records, he was seen by a health visitor in April 2016 shortly after his birth, and the following month for a check-up. There was some contact with a local authority social worker in London in 2018 and four visits to a children's centre in Birmingham, but the review said: 'Records of these contacts and interactions are very limited, reinforcing that there was very little insight into [Abiyah's] existence, health or welfare.' Police visited their home in Handsworth in February 2018 but the review stated that no details were recorded about Abiyah, with his presence 'almost invisible on a review of records'. 'No curiosity' from health visitors Elsewhere, the review noted 'no exploration or curiosity' from the health visiting service, run by Birmingham Community Health Care NHS Foundation Trust, about Abiyah's mother's desire for a home birth with no medical intervention. At a safeguarding meeting in March 2020, health visitor records noted that Abiyah had not been seen by them since his six-week assessment, with appointments at the one and two-year marks since his birth not attended. He had also not received any routine immunisations. While a follow-up inquiry was planned it failed to materialise and the review stated that may have been caused by the Covid lockdown which began that year. The various authorities coming into contact with the child's family showed a 'general lack of knowledge or assessment of the parents' belief systems', leading to an 'insufficient understanding about the impact on his care', the review said. It also said his parents' behaviour 'often distracted or diverted professional attention' away from his safety and welfare. The review stated: 'Parental resistance of advice, support or authority ultimately resulted in [Abiyah] becoming invisible and lost from professional view.' The report included reflections that while social workers had been aware of the family's culture and parents' beliefs and lifestyle, they appeared not to have considered 'with detailed curiosity' the impact on Abiyah's safety and wellbeing, 'such as if indeed his overall needs were being met'. Abiyah's mother opted to take part in the review, stating she believed she was 'doing the right thing at the time' for her son based on her cultural beliefs but that she now wished she had done more research about diet and healthcare. She said it was 'hard to accept that my approach did not lead to the best outcomes for my child and that it took the court process to take me out of that bubble'. Among its recommendations, the review said workforce guidance should be looked at to ensure it 'supports effective assessment and intervention which safeguards those children that become hidden from professional sight and/or when parents choose to live an alternative, or more off-grid lifestyle'. Case raises 'very serious questions' Annie Hudson, chairman of the child safeguarding practice review panel, said the case raised 'very serious questions' about local and national safeguarding systems. She added: 'The local child safeguarding review published today highlights important learning, including about how Abiyah became invisible and lost from the view and oversight of professionals. It evidences strongly the paramount importance of understanding what life is like for children, and not being distracted or diverted away by parental behaviour when considering children's safety and welfare. 'It is important to respect parents' faith and beliefs. However, as this review highlights, professionals must always be mindful of whether their views about parents, including their faith, race and culture, is inhibiting their capacity to be questioning and act together in a timely way to safeguard and protect children.' James Thomas and Sue Harrison, co-chairmen of the BSCP said: 'Protecting children out of professional sight is a real challenge, given the limits of statutory powers to ensure all children are regularly seen. Our partnership has made this one of our top strategic priorities to ensure that we do everything we possibly can to identify risk to those children who are out of sight.' Abiyah's parents were arrested in Somerset on Dec 9, 2022, leading to the discovery of their son's body five days later. Tai was sentenced to 24 years and six months and his wife was ordered to serve 19 years and six months in prison after being found guilty of perverting the course of justice, causing or allowing the death of a child, and child neglect.
