Deya's adopted son

 John Ngirachu and Eric Oloo

Nairobi — The man at the centre of the latest news connected to the family of Bishop Gilbert Deya, the preacher made infamous by the miracle babies' saga, is an adopted son.

A book on the life and times of Gilbert Deya titled Deya and the Miracle Babies and authored by Gakuru wa Macharia provides the best insights into the mind of the man and offers glimpses into his family life.

Information on the exact date of his adoption is not clear but the book says Paul Deya and his brother Walter were adopted by the Deyas after the death of their father, Wilson.

Works hard

Paul, 31, studied at Croydon College and the London University of Arts in the United Kingdom. The book says: "Like all the other sons, Archbishop Deya claims Paul works very hard and is especially close to Daniel (the fourth born)."

At the time of the writing of the book, Paul was also part of the team that worked at the Gilbert Deya Ministries in shooting and editing their films and doing the technical work behind the scenes. He had just married Jackie Okendo, with whom he had a son named Wilson and the couple was expecting another baby, who is now a 17-month-old daughter.

Details on the composition of his family are also consistent with a news story on the website www.mirror.co.uk reporting the attack in which three-year-old Wilson Sydney Otieno was killed and the mother injured. The daughter was not harmed. They lived in North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency in South East London.

Paul is described in the story as a video technician and his 28-year-old wife as his business partner at a video editing place that offered "portrait photographic activities", "other specialist photography" and "film processing". Paul was arrested in hospital after undergoing surgery on wounds on his neck and body.

Cemented grave

An air of calm hang over the native home of Bishop Deya in Got Abiero village, Sakwa Division of Bondo District on Wednesday. News of the tragic incident involving a scion of one of their most famous sons was yet to hit the sleepy village in the depths of western Kenya.

When the Daily Nation visited the homestead in which stands a lone iron-sheet roofed house, Bishop Deya's mother, Mama Monica, who had not learnt of the incident, was visiting a neighbouring home. The cemented grave of the family's patriarch stood out in the deserted homestead in which Mama Monica lives with two of her grandchildren.

When we broke the news, she was visibly shocked as the gravity of the incident sunk in. Initially, she was adamant that such a thing could not have happened as she would have been informed by her kin. She said she was in constant communication with her son's family.

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Mama Monica said she had not been called over the past few days but expected a call from her son's family in London. She could not confirm whom among her grandchildren was involved in the incident saying she had several living abroad and would only wait for word from her son.

Area assistant chief Francis Odhiambo claimed that he had heard of the information from a close family friend but was yet to confirm it. If Bishop Deya's family decides to ferry the remains of the dead home for burial, a series of traditional rites would have to be conducted.

Mama Monica said that traditional Luo customs forbade the body from being carried into the home through the gate. A small passage that is referred to as mbuga in the local dialect, would have to be created through the fence to bring the body into the homestead. However, Bishop Deya's mother said that she is a Christian and did not ascribe to Luo traditions concerning burial rites.