An American missionary who sexually abused young girls (who were orphans) in an orphanage he started in Bomet (Kenya), has been jailed for 16 years by a US court, together with a lifetime supervision after he pleaded guilty to the offenses.
A US-based court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Thursday sentenced Gregory Dow, 61, to 15 years, 8 months in prison, and a lifetime of supervised release for defiling the children in need of care and protection in Kenya. The kids were between 11 and 13 years old.
Some of the girls, now grownups say the missionary would abuse them with the full knowledge of the other female colleagues who worked with him. It is also alleged that some minors might have died at the children’s home and buried in secret graves.
“The defendant purported to be a Christian missionary who cared for these children and asked them to call him ‘Dad’. But instead of being a father figure, he preyed on their youth and vulnerability,” said the US Department of Justice.
The man fled Kenya when he was found out to Lancaster County in the United States where he had established a Children’s Home under the guise of Christianity, with financial support from Churches and Faith-based organizations from the U.S.
Investigations conducted by the Director of Criminal Investigations – DCI Anti-Human Trafficking and Child Protection Unit and the FBI revealed that Dow had sexually abused at least four minors between October 2013 and September 2017, before his dark secrets were unmasked.
Kenyans, however, feel that the jails in the United States are too comfortable for the man and not a punishment enough for his crimes. They feel the man should have been convicted and jailed in Kenya. But with the corruption in Kenya, maybe the man would still be free.
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