A Deadly Exorcism

Real Stories

In August 2016 in North London, 26-year-old Kennedy Ife began acting strange and aggressive following a pain in his throat. He reportedly bit his father, threatened to cut off his own penis, and complained of a python or snake inside of him before his family restrained him to a bed with cable ties and excessive force. As the BBC reported: “The family then set about attempting to ‘cure’ Kennedy through restraint and prayer over the next three days, the court was told.” His brother, Colin Ife, told police: “It’s clear that thing was in him, what we believed was a demon because it was not natural. It was clearly trying to kill him,” he said. “We had to restrain him for himself. It was clear if we didn’t restrain him, he could have tried to harm people in our family.” Kennedy Ife had been bound to his bed for three days without medical attention when his brother called emergency services, explaining that Kennedy Ife was complaining of dehydration. He appeared to have developed breathing issues, and was pronounced dead at 10:17 a.m. As The Independent reported: While police were at the house Colin Ife allegedly carried out an “attempted resurrection” by chanting and praying for Mr. Ife. All seven of Kennedy Ife’s family members were accused of manslaughter, false imprisonment, and causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult. A post-mortem examination revealed over 60 wounds including a possible bite on Kennedy Ife’s body, and his father, Kenneth Ife, along with four of his brothers, sustained injuries as well. The BBC reported: Kenneth Ife told jurors he ordered his sons to take shifts and use "overwhelming force" but denied that an "association with cults, occults and secret societies" played any part in the death. After a four day jury deliberation, all seven family members were cleared of charges on March 14, 2019.