Mother-of-seven Queen Nandi, 43, is said to be the queen of the ruler of Kubala, a small part of a forest in Jedburgh, close to the border with England
A self-proclaimed ‘queen’ of a ‘lost African tribe’ living in Scottish woodlands has opened up about her time in prison on child cruelty charges.
Queen Nandi, 43, a mother-of-seven who was born Jean Gasho, is part of the Kingdom of Kubala alongside her husband ‘King Atehene’ and their handmaiden Asnat.
They have settled in a forest in Jedburgh, with the intention of reclaiming land they claim was stolen from their ancestors in the Highlands 400 years ago. Their presence has baffled locals and caused controversy as revelations about their past emerged.
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Queen Nandi and her ‘King’ also known as Kofi Offeh, were previously arrested for ‘child neglect’ and was held on remand in prison for six months before charges were dropped.
Gasho and Offeh had been scheduled to stand trial at Teesside Crown Court in January this year. However, prosecutors formally decided not to present any evidence against them. The charges were alleged to have occurred in Stockton between June 21 and July 13, 2024.
And in a fresh video, posted to her Facebook page this week, the ‘queen’ has opened up about her time in incarceration.
She said: “Prison was one of the most amazing experiences of my life – I would never change for the world. Of course it was painful. I did cry quite a lot in prison but I danced a lot in prison – I would go to the chapel and dance my life away.
“It was quite a journey and really resonated – everything made sense in prison – read the the The Book of Jeremiah. It was also painful. They threw me in jail and tortured my daughter. They arrested me and the King.
“I said to my husband – I was ready to go to prison for Kabula – you have done nothing wrong. After six months the doors were unlocked from prison. They had no evidence. They can send you to remand without any evidence. It is crazy what is happening in Britain. They had no evidence so had to let us go.”
The queen even named the officer who was behind her arrest and said she now refuses to talk to her. She also made claims she was “tortured in the cells,” which she described as “very traumatic.” She also claimed police ‘took away my books’ when she went to prison.
“They don’t want me to write my story,” she added. “They took away from journal from me for no reason. My letters the King was writing to me in prison were also taken away.
“What the police did to my daughter, to my child, was horrible. What a horrible woman. I could not believe it. I was in prison on my own and she was thrown out of the house. My daughter was on the streets.
“However prison, I wouldn’t change for the world. It was such a powerful experience and grew my faith. I met some amazing people. But I suffered so much racism, was called a child killer, and got beaten up. Some prisoners gravitated towards me.
“It was such a powerful experience. I decorated my cell. My cell went viral. The world needed to see it. People that did see say they had never seen anything like it. It was so pretty – so beautiful. My cell was like a home – so cosy. There was not a shred of evidence so they had to let me go. I was tortured me and they should never have taken my daughter my me.
“The police can take my books. But they can not stop me writing. They are afraid of the story of Kabula but you do not persecute a writer. You can not change it – the story is already written.”
The queen is part of a tribe that claims to live a simple life, bathing in a nearby stream, living in tents, and connecting with nature. They said previously they ‘don’t recognise local laws’ and have faced persecution from those who don’t understand their ways.
Despite this they have been served eviction notices, and have even suffered an attack on their camp when their tents were set on fire. But instead of bowing to local law enforcement – they say they only recognise the laws of their God, named Yahowah.
King Atehene, 36, who was previously an opera singer under the name Kofi Offeh, added: “The prophecy said, after 400 years, when my ancestors are destroyed from the land of Scotland, from the land of Great Britain, they will go into captivity and lose their identity.
“But after 400 years, I will come and bring them back to the land of promise. I am following the ancestral call and the call of the gods. The calling from our creator to embark on this journey, is the most important thing in our life. It is a journey of hope – a pilgrimage.”
“We are the Lost Tribes of Hebrews and have returned to claim Scotland as our homeland, a land stolen by Elizabeth the first 400 years ago when she deported all black people from Scotland and England, who were not Africans but natives of the land.”
Scottish Borders Council said it had been ‘working with Police Scotland’ to the ongoing situation. A spokesperson added: “This has included the provision of advice and information about housing options and other support services.”