Couple murdered teenage brother they accused of witchcraft

A couple are facing life sentences after being found guilty of murdering Kristy Bamu, a teenage boy they accused of witchcraft.

2:11PM GMT 01 Mar 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9115795/Couple-murdered-teenage-brother-they-accused-of-witchcraft.html

Kristy, 15, was tortured and drowned in a bath on Christmas Day 2010 by his sister Magalie and her partner Eric Bikubi.

They believed he had cast spells on another child in the family, the Old Bailey heard.

Football coach Bikubi, 28, and Magalie, 29, of Newham, east London, denied murder but were found guilty.

They were remanded in custody to be sentenced on Monday.

Kristy was in such pain after three days of being attacked with knives, sticks, metal bars, and a hammer and chisel that he ''begged to die'' before slipping under the water.
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He had refused to admit to sorcery and witchcraft and his punishments in a ''deliverance'' ceremony became more horrendous.

He had come to London with his two brothers and two sisters from their home in Paris to visit Magalie during the Christmas holiday in 2010.

But Bikubi turned on them, accusing them of bringing kindoki - or voodoo - into his home.

He forced them to pray for deliverance for three days and nights and deprived them of food and water.

The sisters, aged 20 and 11, were beaten along with Kristy, but escaped further attacks after ''confessing'' to being witches.

Kristy was singled out after wetting his pants. He was struck in the mouth with a heavy bar and hammer, knocking out his teeth.

Ceramic floor tiles and bottles were smashed on his head and and a pair of pliers used to twist his ear.

The terrified siblings, who also included a 13-year-old boy and an autistic brother aged 22, were made to join in the torture.

At one point, Bikubi told the youngsters to jump out of the window to see if they could fly, the court heard.

They looked to their older sister to save them, but instead Magalie encouraged Bikubi and beat Kristy until he also confessed to witchcraft.

Sister Kelly, now 21, broke down several times in court as she relived the terror.

She said: ''They started talking about kindoki, witchcraft and this and that.

''It was as if they were obsessed by witchcraft and then it became absolutely unbearable.

''They asked if we were witches. I repeated again and again and again that we were not witches.

''I did not know what was going on in their minds. They decided we had come there to kill them.''

Kelly added: ''Kristy asked for forgiveness. He asked again and again.

''Magalie did absolutely nothing. She didn't give a damn. She said we deserved it.''

Calling Magalie ''an idiot'', Kelly said: ''I am sure she still believes even to this day that we are witches.

''I have no pity for her. She had no pity for us.''

At the end of their ordeal, they were all placed in the bath to be hosed down in cold water with a shower head.

Brian Altman QC, prosecuting, said: ''It was only when he realised that Kristy was not moving that Eric Bikubi stopped what he was doing and pulled him from the water. By then it was too late.''

Kristy had 130 separate injuries and died from a combination of being beaten and drowning.

Paramedics called to the eighth-floor flat tried to save Kristy but he was already dead.

In the blood-spattered living room, police found Kristy's brothers and sisters.

''All were standing in the living room, hysterical, terrified and soaking wet,'' said Mr Altman.

Items found in the flat had been used as ''weapons of torture''.

He said: ''In a staggering act of depravity and cruelty, they both forced the others to take part in the assaults upon Kristy.

''The children had no option other than to do as they were told, or risk the same violence to themselves.

''As Kristy's injuries became ever more severe, he even pleaded to be allowed to die.

''Eventually Bikubi took him into the bathroom, put him in the bath and started to run the water.

''Kristy was just too badly injured and exhausted to resist or to keep his head above the water.

''Kristy had been the victim of a prolonged attack of unspeakable savagery and brutality.

''Kristy was killed in the name of witchcraft. It is hard to believe in this day and age anyone can believe someone was practising witchcraft.''

Several calls were made during their four-day ordeal to the children's parents in Paris, but they did not realise what was happening.

''Mr Bamu had sent his children on holiday, not to a torture chamber,'' added Mr Altman.

Two years before, family friend Naomi Ilonga, 19, was made to cut off her long hair by the couple to ''release witchcraft'' after being caught biting her nails.

The jury was told that in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the defendants were originally from, witchcraft was practised in Christian churches.

But out of the church's control ''it may take on a feral and indeed evil character, as we suggest it did here'', Mr Altman added.

Bikubi admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility caused by brain damage, but this was rejected.

He also pleaded guilty to two counts of causing actual bodily harm to the girls. Magalie denied the assaults but was found guilty.

Detective Inspector Paul Maddock said later: ''It's an almost unprecedented scenario where siblings are murdering another sibling.

''The family have been very positive, they've pulled together remarkably well.

''They were more than willing to give evidence and make sure the perpetrators were dealt with appropriately.''

Scotland Yard has investigated 83 cases involving abuse resulting from ritualistic or faith-based beliefs, and brought 17 prosecutions, over the last 10 years.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/05/2012 12:40AM by S_Byers666.

ITV London Tonight

DRC: Special report

http://www.itv.com/london/drc-special-report29370/

Thu Mar 1 2012

He was murdered in London, born and raised in France but Kristy Bamu's family came from the Democratic Republic of Congo, so that's where I travelled with African Religion expert, Dr Richard Hoskins to investigate the background to a practise which is known in the DRC as Kindocki.

The DRC is a country which has been devastated by civil war with millions driven from their homes and thousands of children abandoned, thrown onto the streets, not just because their parents are poor but because they believe their children are possessed.

Investigations have shown that rouge revivalist churches are often at the root the problem and more of these churches are now springing up right here in London

In my special report to be broadcast on ITV London Tonight this evening, Dr Hoskins says:

It’s absolutely astonishing that parents in Africa who love their children can be persuaded in this way by pastors.

It's baffling as to why they believe these pastors but it’s just an ingrown belief system and no-one seems to want to stand up against these pastors and say actually this isn’t true and it’s wrong."

There are so many children abandoned because they've been accused of 'kindocki' on the streets of Kinshasa that Save The Children has set up specialised shelters offering them care and support.

We visited one of their centres on the outskirts of the city.

A boy of twelve was one of the first to tell me how he came to be living in the centre. The details were harrowing. He said:

"I was taken to a church and accused of witchcraft. Here they bit me on the stomach to suck out the witchcraft they thought lived inside me. They hit me to remove the evil spirits. They shoved sticks in my ears and they poured hot candle wax over my body and a liquid into my eyes that stung. So, I ran away from the church and ended up on the streets."

The shocking truth is children in the DRC and elsewhere are being accused of 'kindocki' for behaviours most parents would deem normal. A youngster who is not eating properly or a child who wets the bed or is cheeky and mischievous is often accused of being a witch and cast out of the family home.

Still, the children we met in the Save The Children centre were the fortunate ones. Many, many more were living on the streets doing anything they could to feed themselves. They are everywhere you go. The youngest we encountered was a little girl of seven but we were told about other children who'd been abandoned when they were much younger.

Churches are powerful institutions in the DRC and the fact that pastors are often involved in accusing children of being witches makes it difficult problem to root out. Several openly advertise exorcism ceremonies.

We discovered a revivalist church where a young girl was being prepared for a service to rid her of so called evil spirits.

She hadn't eaten or drunk anything for two whole days and had been made to sit outside without anything to shade her from the scorching sunshine.

The pastor told me this was being done 'In the name of Jesus Christ.'

He claimed she was possessed because she 'got up and walked around at night'. He refused to consider she may simply be sleep-walking and that this was quite common in young children.

What we saw in the DRC was not just disturbing, it was really upsetting. As journalists we're trained to be objective but when it comes to watching children suffer it is never easy - especially when you know they and their families are being exploited by those who should know better.

There is a law in DRC making it illegal to accuse anyone of witchcraft but it's rarely enforced and now the abuse has found its way to the London with horrific results.

By: Ronke Phillips

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Can be viewed from the website above if in the UK. If overseas run a VPN app. like ExpatShield first.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/05/2012 01:53AM by S_Byers666.

Witchcraft murder: Couple jailed for Kristy Bamu killing

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-17255470

Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu were convicted of murdering Bamu's 15-year-old brother Kristy

A couple who tortured and murdered a 15-year-old boy they accused of using witchcraft have been jailed for life.

Kristy Bamu and four of his siblings were visiting his sister Magalie Bamu, 29, and her partner Eric Bikubi, 28, when he was killed.

Kristy drowned in a bath in an exorcism at their flat in Newham, east London, on Christmas Day in 2010 after days of torture, the Old Bailey heard.

Bikubi was sentenced to a minimum of 30 years while Bamu must serve 25 years.

During sentencing, Judge David Paget said the murder had a "sadistic element", adding it was "prolonged torture involving mental and physical suffering being inflicted before death".

Hammer and chisel

He added that the ordeal the children were subjected to "almost passes belief". However, he accepted Bikubi's defence that he had brain damage and had believed that Kristy was a witch.

But Judge Paget added: "The belief in witchcraft, however genuine, cannot excuse an assault to another person, let alone the killing of another human being."

Kristy Bamu Kristy Bamu suffered 130 injuries and was found dead in a bath

He told Bamu he did not accept her denial of belief in witchcraft and that she was forced to attack Kristy by Bikubi.

"It is only explicable if you shared Eric Bikubi's belief. It provides some explanation for what happened, but it does not excuse it," he told her, adding that at no stage had she said sorry.

During the trial, the court heard that Kristy was attacked with knives, sticks, metal bars, ceramic floor tiles, bottles and a hammer and chisel by Bikubi and Bamu who also used a pair of pliers to twist his ear.

He drowned after he was placed in a bath for ritual cleansing.

'Jump from window'

Kristy was visiting the couple from Paris for Christmas along with his siblings, who were also attacked by the couple after Bikubi accused them of bringing "kindoki" - or witchcraft - into his home.

Bikubi beat all three of them and forced other children to join in with the attacks, the jury heard.

Kristy's sisters, aged 20 and 11, escaped further attacks after "confessing" to being witches.

But he was singled out for wetting his pants.

Not only has she has lost her entire family, she faces a solitary life in prison”

Philippa McAlasney QC Magalie Bamu's barrister

At one point, Bikubi told them to jump out of the window to see if they could fly. They looked to their older sister for help but instead Bamu encouraged Bikubi and beat Kristy until he also confessed to witchcraft.

In court, his sister Kelly, now 21, said: "It was as if they were obsessed by witchcraft. They decided we had come there to kill them."

She added: "Kristy asked for forgiveness. He asked again and again. Magalie did absolutely nothing. She didn't give a damn. She said we deserved it."

Bamu was also found guilty of two counts of assault, charges which Bikubi had pleaded guilty to. Judge Paget said he would not pass separate sentences for these convictions.

'Ritualistic' abuse

Henry Grunwald QC, for Bikubi, said: "What happened would not have ended as it did had it not been for Mr Bikubi's mental impairment."

Philippa McAlasney QC, for Magalie, said: "Not only has she lost her entire family, she faces a solitary life in prison."

Kristy's father, Pierre, had previously said in a statement: "I feel betrayed. To know that Kristy's own sister, Magalie, did nothing to save him makes the pain that much worse."

Scotland Yard said it had investigated 83 cases involving abuse resulting from ritualistic or faith-based beliefs over the last 10 years.

Det Supt Terry Sharpe said: "The sentencing reflected the brutality and sadistic cruelty inflicted on Kristy in the days leading up to his death.

"This is a hidden and under-reported crime and therefore difficult to deal with in terms of protecting potential victims from harm."

Hi.

Have you heard of a documentary about "the Witch Children of Africa"? I believe it was filmed around 2006, and you might be able to still find up on YouTube. Just be warned that it is horrible--I myself was not able to watch the whole thing. Those poor kids, so vulnerable and helpless. But the good news is that the "bishop" portrayed in the film and the woman who started this whole thing have been persecuted by the law. Not sure where all of it stands now as compared to 2006, except like you mentioned in your posts, a lot of the kids are getting helped.