When Mathew Lane Durham came to Upendo Children’s home in Gachororo, Juja on April 30, 2014 for a three-month stint as a volunteer, he was welcomed with love. The young man had a lovely personality and with baby face, no one imagined he was a calculating paedophile.
Last week, a US court handed the 21-year-old missionary from Oklahoma a 40-year jail term for sexually abusing children at the home.
The sexual assaults occurred between May and June 2014 when Durham, was volunteering at the centre in Nairobi.
“In a span of just 33 days,” prosecutors wrote to the court, Durham “raped three girls - ages 5, 9 and 15 - at least eight times. During that same time period, he sexually molested a 12-year-old boy twice.”
And now that the man has been convicted, the children’s home fraternity share their experiences with The Standard on Sunday.
Josephine Wambugu, the home manager, says a month after Durham’s arrival at the orphanage, she noticed an odd behaviour in him. He was treating the children in a suspicious manner, especially the girls. Slowly, his true colours started showing.
“One night I went to check whether the girls had slept and I found Durham sleeping in one of the girls’ beds. I asked him what he was doing inside the girls’ dormitory but he did not respond. He just went to his room,” recalls Ms Wambugu.
The following day, she together with the founder of the home — Eunice Menja — confronted him and demanded an explanation. His confession was terrifying.
Soft spot for girls
“He took a piece of paper and wrote shocking things he had been doing to the children. Most are unprintable. He confessed that he had defiled 12 children — seven girls and five boys. It was shocking,” she recalls.
After that confession, the missionary hurriedly left the country for the US. They immediately reported the matter to the police and investigations started, she says.
A medical examination confirmed that Durham had molested the minors. With that strong evidence, the case was forwarded to the US Government through the embassy and the case kicked off.
The children’s’ home manager together with eight children traveled to Oklahoma in the US last July to testify in the high profile case.
During the hearing of the case, one victim narrated the harrowing ordeal.
“He would come and start to touch me inappropriately before defiling me. He would then warn me against disclosing what had happened and if I did, he threatened to stop my sponsorship. I kept quiet because I did not want my sponsorship to be cancelled,” the girl said amid tears.
Though the horror and shame they went through cannot be washed away, the children appreciate that finally justice has been served.
“It is good news to learn that Durham has been handed a heavy sentence. We prayed every day that justice would be served. We feared if acquitted he might come back and do more nasty things to us,” said another girl.
Now that their attacker is behind bars, the founder of the children’s home says the children need psychological support to heal from the nasty ordeal.
“By the time the offender is out of prison, they will be so far ahead and no longer vulnerable. Thank you God for being faithful and helping us fight,” read her message posted on her social media page.
Mr Joseph Muchiri, a staff at the home says even though they are happy justice has been served, they feel the sentence is too lenient.
“We would have been happier if he was given a lifetime sentence. We feel he deserved a harsher sentence,” said Mr Muchiri.
Locals on Sunday welcomed the judgment saying justice for the children had been served.
“It should come as a stern warning to those people who prey on children. I just wish justice system in Kenya was as efficient and trasparent as that in the US,” says Wambui Kiama, a resident of Gachororo.
Harsher sentence
The US jury found Durham guilty on the seven counts of the charge in June last year.
But the judge acquitted him on three of the counts in January this year since the prosecutors failed to establish that he engaged in sexual acts with the children.
As part of the healing journey, Wambugu says they plan to relocate to a new and bigger place.
“We have found land in Makuyu that has all the infrastructure and it costs Sh14 million. We have not managed to raise the full amount and are appealing to well-wishers to chip in so that we can give these children a decent life,” she appeals.
The home caters for 36 children mostly orphans from the surrounding community and its environs. To avoid incidences of sexual abuse and ensure the minors are always safe, the management has installed a 24-hour CCTV camera which monitors all activity at the home.
