An American priest yesterday broke down in court several times as he narrated his 87-day ordeal at the hands of his three Nigerian captors.

Rev William Danny Marrow, 60, recounted how after being kidnapped, he was stripped naked, thrown down on the corridor, burnt on his private parts and feet with candles and two guards kept watch over him round the clock.

"I cannot describe to the court the pain I felt as they burnt me with the candles and cigarette butts," he said amid sobs. "They demanded I raise $5 million (Sh390 million) for my freedom."

During his captivity between January 27 to April 23, Rev Marrow survived on half a loaf of bread, water and Coca Cola. His ankles and wrists were chained and locked with padlocks. 

He said he could not move and on several occasions urinated on his mattress.

Rev Marrow and two other Americans were held hostage in Nairobi's South B in attempts to extort the ransom.

They were rescued on April 23 after the Kenyan police and the FBI agents waylaid one of the Nigerians, Agustine Stine Azubuike Nwangwa, alias Michael Otieno as he went to collect part of the ransom.

The other two Nigerians, Ahmed Suleiman, his brother and three associates are still at large.

Rev Marrow was testifying before Nairobi Chief Magistrate Boaz Olao together with the other two Americans, Jim Edward Harrell, 58 and Juergen Robert Ahlmann, 67. They were scheduled to leave the country last night.

Rev Marrow, who lives in Ecuador, South America, said he was last September contacted through the internet by one of the Nigerian's, who used the name Michael Otieno, through his firm, Marrow International Incorporate Export and Import Company Limited.

He said the Nigerian, who claimed he was a Kenyan, convinced him to come to Kenya for raw diamonds worth $9.5 million (Sh741million).

Michael Otieno sent him air tickets and told him that he had been booked at the Grand Regency Hotel, only to be taken hostage on arrival. 

From the airport where he was picked up by Otieno and a young lady, Rev Marrow was taken to a house where he welcomed by a Mr Ahmed Suleiman who was clad in a blue West African outfit "Welcome to Kenya. My name is Ahmed Sueliman and I am in charge of kidnapping for East Africa," his host.

He was then manhandled from behind by several men, who muzzled his mouth with masking tape and bound his hands and feet with chains which were then locked with padlocks while another man held a long knife.

Rev Marrow was taken upstairs to his jail room and was only brought downstairs on few occasion to write e-mails to his family asking them to raise the US$ 5 million ransom without disclosing that he had been kidnapped.

Rev Marrow explained the ransom money was to be transfered to a New York account whose details had been provided to him by his captors.

Rev Marrow told the court how he was forced to email his friends and business associates in German and other parts of Europe telling them about the deal in order to lure them to Kenya so that the Nigerians could also take them hostage.

The other two Americans, Jim Edward Harrell and Juergen Robert Ahlmann both from San Diego California who are business partners in a Fish-Cart company shipping fish from Mississippi to Europe.

Mr Harrell is a retired police officer and has 25 experience in the police force.

The two were contacted by Michael Otieno via the internet who offered to invest US$ 9.5 (Sh741 million) in their company while the two Americans would provide their expertise.

Mr Ahlmann who handled all the communication with Otieno told the court that he came to Kenya to meet Mr Ahmed Suleiman who was the boss of Otieno.

Otieno and Mr Suleiman sent two air tickets to San Diego for the two Americans who arrived at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport board British Airways on April 14 and were driven to South B where they joined Rev Marrow in captivity.

They were only set free on the April 23 after their spouses back in the America managed to send US$7,000 for their freedom through Western Union. As they were being driven to the airport in a taxi by one of the guards working for the Nigerians, FBI intercepted the taxi on Mombasa road and rescued them.

Lawyer P C Onduso is representing the accused, Michael Otieno.

The hearing continues on Monday.