A pastor in the UK faces up to eight years in prison after the man she was baptizing drowned, according to The Telegraph.
Cheryl Bartley (below) is the leader and “pastor” of Life Changing Ministries. Notably, she claims she visits heaven all the time, and that she regularily speaks to angels, previously claiming “I work with angels. I tell angels to do stuff and they do it.”
In 2023, she was live-streaming the baptism of 61-year-old Robert Yap in her backyard, in a kiddie pool, when the video suddenly cut out. Yap was a long-time member of the church, along with being a grandfather of seven, and this was his second baptism.
According to the Mirror UK:
“In a 54-minute video on Life Changing Ministries’ public Facebook page, the church minister fights her tears as she celebrates the man’s life. She says Mr Yap had caught a “glimpse of heaven” and “didn’t want to come back, he just passed on”.…Ms Reid-Bartley adds: “This man wanted to secure his place in heaven. The Lord had a conversation. You know how a baptism goes okay… You know how it goes, that many people get a glimpse of heaven… You know, some come up and they see God Himself. They see the father. He (Mr Yap) had a glimpse of heaven… This man wanted to secure salvation.”
She later says: “I was taken to heaven instantly to see Robert Yap… He’s young, he’s dancing with Jesus in the garden.”
It is unclear exactly how he died.
Malcolm McHaffie, head of the CPS’s Special Crime Division, has warned people not to speculate or share details of the death.
“We remind all concerned that criminal proceedings against this defendant are active and that she has the right to a fair trial. It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”
Prosecutors are charging her with one count of gross negligence manslaughter, which carries up to eight years in prison.
