Man subjected to exorcisms over ‘witchcraft’ claims fears victims being missed during pandemic
A man who was subjected to two years of exorcisms after being accused of witchcraft believes victims are going undetected in the UK during the coronavirus pandemic.
Mardoche Yembi told Sky News his relatives believed he was possessed by an “evil spirit” as a child and blamed him for his mother’s death after moving to London from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He fears youngsters have been at greater risk of the abuse during the UK’s lockdowns after campaigners said children with COVID have been branded witches in some communities.
Mardoche Yembi says he was left ‘scared’ and ‘depressed’ after being accused of witchcraft. Pic Mardoche Yembi
Police have warned cases of child abuse linked to faith or belief are “highly under-reported” – and there are fears school closures during the pandemic have worsened the problem.
Just six cases were recorded by the Metropolitan Police in the first half of 2021, compared to 37 cases throughout the whole of 2018.
Detective Sergeant Kate Bridger told Sky News that abuse by believers in witchcraft and spirit possession “can take all different forms” including physical, sexual and emotional.
“People who are ‘possessed’ could be cut, beaten, or have chilli powder put on any orifice to burn the spirit coming out,” she said.
“Ultimately, a person could be murdered because that person is the vessel for that evil spirit that creates such a risk for the believer.”
• Children killed in UK over witchcraft and possession claims
Fifteen-year-old Kristy Bamu was tortured and murdered by his older sister Magalie and her partner after they accused the teenager of using witchcraft in east London in 2010.
Kristy Bamu was tortured and drowned on Christmas Day because a relative believed he was a witch
Eight-year-old Victoria Climbie was tortured to death in north London in 2000 by her great aunt and her partner after a Christian preacher convinced them she was possessed.
Victoria Climbie was tortured to death in 2000 after her carers believed she was possessed
On Monday, a hospital anaesthetist is due to be sentenced after injecting his partner with drugs during a series of exorcism ceremonies, leaving her close to death with multiple organ failure.
Hossam Metwally made dozens of video recordings of himself administering fluids through a cannula to Kelly Wilson while chanting as part of a “dangerous perversion” of the Islamic Ruqya ritual, Sheffield Crown Court heard.
The 60-year-old, who is originally from Egypt, told the jury he performed rituals on Ms Wilson to exorcise evil spirits, called Jinns, but claimed he only used holy oil and did not inject anaesthetics.
Hossam Metwally is facing jail after injecting his partner with drugs during a series of exorcism ceremonies
However a jury found the father-of-four guilty of endangering Ms Wilson’s life through the unlawful and deliberate intravenous administration of anaesthetics or sedative agents and drug possession offences.
• ‘The pastor came into the house… trying to get the demon off me’
Mr Yembi said he was first branded a witch by relatives at the age of 11 and he faced a two-year ordeal that left him “scared” and “depressed”.
“They took me to church to try to get the ‘demon spirit’ away from me – that’s what they called it,” he told Sky News.
“I started running away from home a lot because there was a lot of shouting and a lot of blaming on me.
“The pastor came into the house a lot, preaching and trying to get the demon off me.”
Mr Yembi said he was threatened with a knife in one incident and, on another occasion, his treasured football trophy was burnt.
Mardoche Yembi, pictured as a teenager, was first branded a witch by relatives at the age of 11. Pic: Mardoche Yembi
“I don’t want any child to go through it,” he said. “It’s just bad. I was depressed. I was in a bad place.
“I just felt lonely.
“I started getting scared.
“I couldn’t do anything in the house. I had to go in my room and lock myself in there.”
• Fears children accused of witchcraft being missed
Before he moved to the UK, Mr Yembi said he had seen children accused of witchcraft in Congo go through horrific rituals in which they were beaten and had chilli pepper rubbed in their eyes.
After his school learnt of a plan to take him back to the African country, Mr Yembi said social services became involved and he was admitted to a mental health hospital after his ordeal left him feeling suicidal, before he was placed in foster care.
The 29-year-old said he was never physically harmed and he has forgiven the relatives involved – who were not prosecuted – but he no longer speaks to them.
“I believe they still believe in it,” he added.
Mr Yembi, who is now a painter and decorator in London, as well as a motivational speaker, said he believes children are still being accused of witchcraft in the UK today.
“With the lockdowns, any kid who is going through it, it doesn’t help to be honest,” he added.
Mardoche Yembi says he doesn’t want other children to go through his ordeal. Pic: Mardoche Yembi
• Children with COVID symptoms accused of being ‘possessed’
International human rights activist Mandy Sanghera said she is aware of cases where people have sought rituals to cure “evil spirits” in children during the pandemic, after they have been blamed for adults losing jobs or being put on furlough.
She said some of those who carry out rituals claim that COVID is not real and tell the parents of children with symptoms of the virus that they are “possessed”.
“People’s religion overrides their common sense sometimes,” she told Sky News.
“We need professionals to be very clear about protection and not political correctness.
“Sometimes people – frontline social workers, police officers – won’t address certain things because they’ll say ‘it’s cultural’ or ‘we don’t want to get involved’. But sometimes it’s too late.”
Ms Sanghera said some people have been charged “hundreds of pounds and even thousands” for exorcisms and rituals to be carried out.
Some parents of children with epilepsy have been told “that was the evil spirit coming out”, she added.
“It’s really shocking some of the things people will believe, in the name of religion and culture,” she said.
• Which cultures and religions believe in witchcraft and spirit possession?
According to the Met Police, child abuse linked to faith or belief is not confined to one faith, nationality or ethnic community.
Examples have been recorded across several religions including Christians, Muslims and Hindus, the force said.
In England, around 1,950 suspected victims of child abuse based on faith or belief were identified by councils in 2018/19 – a 34% increase on the previous year, according to the Local Government Association.
Met Police inspector Allen Davis, who works to tackle abuse linked to faith and belief, told Sky News that the risk had increased during the pandemic.
“We can’t afford for this to be a taboo subject,” he said. “This is about protecting the vulnerable.
“It’s out there. We’re doing something about it.
“If we don’t respond and we don’t intervene early, what can be the worst scenario? That’s when we end up with the tragic child murders that we’re trying to prevent.”
Leethen Bartholomew, head of the National FGM Centre, said the pandemic had resulted in children having less contact with professionals – such as teachers and youth workers – who “spot the signs” of abuse linked to claims of witchcraft and spirit possession.
The organisation has previously warned that if vulnerable children or adults contract COVID, they could be labelled as being witches or possessed by families with those beliefs.
“The pandemic has put extra pressures on families, particularly those living in difficult circumstances, which can fuel harmful acts of abuse or neglect on children,” Mr Bartholomew said.
“So it is important that we support children and young people, create safe spaces to talk about their fears and anxieties and respond appropriately.”
Two senior Labour MPs have suggested the prime minister may have to go within months if the government continues to perform poorly.
Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates said his sources – a member of the government and a prominent politician – have “put Sir Keir Starmer on notice”.
Both warned that, if Labour performs badly in next May’s elections across Wales, Scotland and London, it could mark the end of his time in Downing Street.
Coates added: “The level of unhappiness and despair in parts of the Labour Party is so striking that right now, on the first anniversary, I am hearing from ministers in government that Starmer might have to go in months.”
Reform UK is surging in the polls in Wales, while Labour faces a threat from left-wing parties such as the Greens in London.
It comes as the prime minister made it clear that Rachel Reeves has his “complete support” as chancellor and remains integral to his project, Sky News’s political editor Beth Rigby understands.
She looked visibly upset during Prime Minister’s Questions, with a spokesperson claiming she had been affected by a “personal matter”.
A day earlier, Sir Keir’s controversial welfare bill was passed despite a sizeable rebellion from Labour MPs, with major U-turns meaning a new £5bn black hole has appeared in the country’s finances.
One senior figure told Rigby that the pair were as “as close politically” as any chancellor and prime minister have ever been.
“She is going absolutely nowhere,” they added.
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Welfare vote ‘a blow to the prime minister’
Ms Reeves’s tears sent markets spiralling, with the value of the pound and long-term government bonds falling sharply.
Later in the day Sir Keir, said Ms Reeves will be chancellor for a “very long time to come”.
The prime minister said it was “absolutely wrong” to suggest her tearful appearance in the Commons related to the welfare U-turn.
“It’s got nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with what’s happened this week. It was a personal matter for her,” he said while speaking to the BBC’s podcast Political Thinking with Nick Robinson.
“I’m not going to intrude on her privacy by talking to you about that. It is a personal matter.”
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Asked if she will remain in post, he said: “She will be chancellor by the time this is broadcast, she will be chancellor for a very long time to come, because this project that we’ve been working on to change the Labour party, to win the election, change the country, that is a project which the chancellor and I’ve been working on together.”
He said Ms Reeves has done a “fantastic job” and added: “She and I work together, we think together. In the past, there have been examples – I won’t give any specific – of chancellors and prime ministers who weren’t in lockstep. We’re in lockstep.”
Wes Streeting, the health secretary, also offered a strong defence for the prime minister and chancellor.
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Health Secretary: Reeves is ‘resilient’
He told Sky News this morning that Sir Keir has been “consistently underestimated” and was “of course” safe as prime minister.
And he said Ms Reeves was a “tough character” who was ” resilient” and “here to stay”.
Despite making “significant improvements”, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has lost the “trust and confidence” of some victims of grooming gangs, according to a report by the police watchdog.
Michelle Skeer, His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary, said that since 2019, when GMP started to review its non-recent child sexual exploitation investigations, “the force has improved its understanding and approach to investigating allegations of child criminal and sexual exploitation”.
The document, published today, said police have live investigations into “multi-victim, multi-offender” child sexual exploitation inquiries, involving 714 victims and survivors, and 1,099 suspects.
Grooming gangs scandal timeline
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‘Our chance for justice’
But despite recording improvements, a report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) also identified:
• Various training gaps within the investigation team
• Lack of consistency in evaluating case files between social care, health and police
• Failures to initially support victims meant they had “lost trust and confidence” in police
The report was commissioned by the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham in 2024 to evaluate whether police, councils and health services can protect children from sexual exploitation in the future.
Its release comes days after Sir Keir Starmer announced he was launching a new national inquiry into grooming gangs after previously arguing one was not necessary,
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Starmer to launch new grooming gang inquiry
The findings were issued as the final part of the CSE (child sexual exploitation) Assurance Review process which started in 2017. The first three reports examined non-recent child sexual exploitation in Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale.
Mr Skeer said that the force has been trying to improve its service to those who have experienced sexual exploitation, but previous failings have badly affected trust in GMP.
He said: “For some, trust and confidence in the police had been lost, and the force would not be able to rectify their experiences.
“It is vital that improvements are led by victims’ experiences, and if they do come forward, they are supported, protected and taken seriously.”
A recent report by Baroness Casey found a significant over-representation of Asian men who are suspects in grooming gangs in Greater Manchester, adding though authorities are in “denial” more needs to be done to understand why this is the case.
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Teen caught in child sex exploitation
Inspectors also said there were “training gaps” in some investigation teams and issues with data sharing, with local councils sometimes not willing to provide detectives with information, leading to “significant delays in investigations” into grooming gangs.
It cites problems with intelligence provided by Manchester City Council, which took months to arrive and “was so heavily redacted that some pages contained only a few words”, the report said.
Read more from Sky News:
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Grooming survivor wants apology from Starmer
GMP is the only force in the country to set up a dedicated team to investigate grooming gangs. Called the Child Sexual Exploitation Major Investigation Team (CSE MIT) it has about 100 staff and a ringfenced budget.
In October 2024, the force told inspectors there were 59 live multi-victim, multi-offender child sexual exploitation investigations, of which 13 were being managed by the CSE MIT.
The report adds: “The force fully accepts that it made mistakes in the past.
“It has taken positive and effective steps to learn from these mistakes and improve how it investigates recent and non-recent child sexual exploitation.”
Separately, the Baird Inquiry published in July 2024 found officers at GMP were abusing their power – making unlawful arrests, unlawful and demeaning strip searches, sometimes treating victims as perpetrators, and traumatising those who have suffered sexual abuse or domestic violence.
The health secretary has offered a strong defence of the prime minister and chancellor – ahead of Sir Keir Starmer setting out his 10-year vision for the NHS.
PM ‘might have to go in months’ – politics latest
Wes Streeting dismissed suggestions the prime minister could be forced out in months following the toughest week of his premiership yet, and described Rachel Reeves as “resilient” and would “bounce back” following her tearful appearance in the Commons on Wednesday.
Overnight, two senior sources – a member of the government and a prominent politician – told Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates that they had “put Sir Keir Starmer on notice”.
The health secretary, who was speaking as Sir Keir prepares to set out his 10-year vision for the NHS, said the prime minister had been “consistently underestimated”.
Asked by Kamali Melbourne on Sky News Breakfast whether Sir Keir was “safe”, Mr Streeting said: “Of course.
“Keir Starmer has been consistently underestimated. I wonder when people will learn.
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Reeves has ‘complete support’
“They said he couldn’t win the Labour leadership, but he did. They said he couldn’t change the Labour Party, but he did.
“They said he couldn’t take the Labour Party from its worst defeat since the 1930s to election victory last year. And he did and now the cynics say he can’t change the country, but he will.”
As for Ms Reeves – whose tearful appearance in the Commons spooked markets after the prime minister initially failed to back her, Mr Streeting said the chancellor was a “tough character” who was “resilient and she will bounce back”.
The health secretary declined to expand on why Ms Reeves was in the chamber at all yesterday, repeating that it was a personal matter.
“Rachel Reeves as chancellor is here to stay,” he continued.
“We need her to get the economy from strength to strength, to make sure that family finances are in better health than we were when we came into office.”
Speculation about the futures of the two most senior members of the government threaten to overshadow the announcement today, which the government says is “one of the most seismic shifts” in the health service’s history.
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Why has Starmer axed NHS England?
Sir Keir will pledge three main facets of the plan: moving care into the community, digitising the NHS, and a focus on sickness prevention.
The prime minister will announce neighbourhood health services will be rolled out across England to improve access to the NHS and to shift care out of overstrained hospitals.
Sir Keir has already promised thousands more GPs will be trained, and to end the 8am “scramble” for an appointment.
He also previously said his government will bring the NHS into the digital age, with “groundbreaking” new tools to support GPs rolled out over the next two years – including AI to take notes, draft letters and enter data.
And he will promise new contracts that will encourage and allow GP practices to cover a wider geographical area, so small practices will get more support.
Unite, one of the UK’s largest healthcare unions, welcomed the plan cautiously but said staff need to be the focus to ensure people are better looked after.
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‘Reform or die’
Sir Keir said: “The NHS should be there for everyone, whenever they need it.
“But we inherited a health system in crisis, addicted to a sticking plaster approach, and unable to face up to the challenges we face now, let alone in the future.
“That ends now. Because it’s reform or die.”
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Neighbourhood health services
The newly announced neighbourhood health services will provide “pioneering teams” in local communities, so patients can more conveniently access a full range of healthcare services close to home.
Local areas will be encouraged to trial innovative schemes like community outreach door-to-door to detect early signs of illness and reduce pressure on GPs and A&E.
The aim is to eventually have new health centres open 12 hours a day, six days a week to offer GP services as well as diagnostics, post-operative care and rehab.
They will also offer services like debt advice, employment support, stop smoking help or weight management.
More NHS dentists
Dentists will also be part of the plan, with dental care professionals part of the neighbourhood teams.
Dental “therapists” will carry out check-ups, treatments and referrals, while dental nurses could give education and advice to parents or work with schools and community groups.
Newly qualified dentists will be required to practice in the NHS for a minimum period, which they have said will be three years.
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