A “zealous” vegan couple are on trial for causing the death of their three-year-old son, whom they allegedly buried in their back garden.
Tai and Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah, aged 42 and 43, are accused of causing or allowing the death of their son Abiyah at their former home in Handsworth, Birmingham, in early 2020.
The couple deny charges of causing or allowing death, perverting the course of justice and child cruelty by failing to provide adequate nourishment or summon medical care.
Evidence presented to Coventry Crown Court revealed Abiyah died following a respiratory illness while suffering from multiple severe health conditions.
Tai and Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah are accused of causing or allowing the death of their son Abiyah
PA
The child was found to have severe malnutrition, rickets, anaemia and stunted growth at the time of his death.
Medical examinations also showed the three-year-old had severe dental decay.
Prosecutor Jonas Hankin KC told the court it would have been “obvious to both defendants that Abiyah was in considerable pain before his death.”
“They had control over their own lives, they were responsible for their actions,” said Hankin. “At any time they could have made different decisions.”
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The couple, pictured arriving at Coventry Crown Court
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The prosecutor alleged the Yasharahyalahs were motivated by a restrictive vegan diet and a desire to avoid unwanted attention from authorities.
Hankin told jurors the couple were prepared to allow their child to “suffer the consequences” of inadequate nutrition and lack of medical care.
“They acted together,” he said. “They shared parental responsibility, they shared their belief system.”
The court heard their disengagement from society had left both parents barely able to walk by the time of police interviews.
Hankin described their actions as showing “breathtaking arrogance and cruelty.”
Police discovered Abiyah’s skeletal remains in December 2022 in the couple’s garden.
Examinations revealed the child had suffered five broken bones, including a fractured arm that led to a “false joint,” and rib fractures.
“He must have been in very considerable pain from the moment the injury was sustained and thereafter for several weeks,” Hankin told the court.
“Neither defendant was able to explain satisfactorily why the emergency services were not called.”
The prosecutor said the couple’s claim that Abiyah was symptom-free before his death, except for a cold-like illness, was “for the birds.”
The defence argued the key issue was whether the parents acted wilfully in failing to provide proper care.
Bernard Tetlow KC, representing Tai Yasharahyalah, said: “They genuinely believed they were doing the right thing. They genuinely believed that their diet and the belief in natural and holistic medicines was the best way.”
The couple treated Abiyah with natural remedies including raw garlic when he fell ill in January 2020.
Charles Sherrard KC, defending Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah, urged jurors to return not guilty verdicts, saying his client was “well-intentioned and loving.”
The judge is understood to have started summing up the evidence in the case to the jury on Tuesday.
