Couple ‘left dead son, 4, in bed for 8 days then buried him in garden after trying to heal fatal illness with garlic’
A COUPLE embalmed their “skeletal” son after trying to treat his fatal illness with garlic then buried him in the garden, a court heard.
Abiyah Yasharahyalah, four, was discovered at home in Birmingham in December 2022.
His parents Tai and Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah are accused of failing to neglecting their son by failing to provide adequate food for the youngster.
The couple, who were described as weak and thin due to their strict vegan diet, allegedly left Abiyah “severely malnourished”.
Mum Naiyahmi mainly ate raisins and nuts and after “cutting out all processed food”, the family’s food supplies “diminished”, it was said.
Abiyah suffered with rickets, anaemia, stunted growth, bone malformation and deformity in his short life, jurors heard.
Coventry Crown Court was told Abiyah fell ill with a cold or flu in 2020, which his parents treated naturally with raw ginger and garlic.
He was discovered lifeless the following morning but his mum and dad kept him in their bed for eight days for a “ritual”.
Jurors were told Tai Yasharahyalah hoped his son would “come back” before embalming him with frankincense and myrrh.
Abiyah’s body was exhumed two years later, with police discovering his birth and death had not been registered.
The couple had been evicted from the rented property but left their son’s remains in the back garden, the court heard.
When they were eventually found by police in a caravan in Glastonbury, they said they had renounced their citizenship and were living as “sovereign and indigenous members of the Kingdom of Yasharahyalah”.
Officers observed they were both “extremely thin” with their bones visible through their clothing.
Mum Naiyahmi in particular struggled to walk and was described by police as “skeletal”.
Prosecutor Jonas Hankin KC claimed the couple had “separately and together neglected” Abiyah by failing to provide him with adequate food and medical care.
He added: “They deliberately chose not to provide or arrange for the provision of adequate nutrition and medical care.
“Instead they prioritised their cultural practices and beliefs over the child’s welfare, with disastrous consequences.
“The defendants claim that their behaviour throughout was in accordance with their cultural beliefs, principally their strict veganism, and rejection of Western medicine.”
The couple have denied causing or allowing their son’s death, neglect, cruelty and perverting the course of justice.
The trial continues.