Kaura Taylor’s family believed she was missing, but the truth might be just as hard to swallow as the Texas woman was found living in a Scottish forest as a handmaiden to a “king” of a lost “African” tribe. 

According to UK-based media group SWNS, Taylor has been living among the Kingdom of Kubala, which is led by King Atehene, 36, and his wife, Queen Nandi. Taylor, who now goes by the name Asnat, told the news station that while she’s not married to King Atehene, who once went by the name Kofi Offeh and was an opera singer, she considers him her husband.  

“To the U.K. authorities, obviously I am not missing,” she said in a video message from the group. “Leave me alone. I am an adult, not a helpless child.” 

There was no mention of how long Taylor had been “missing,” or when her family filed the report, or if they knew she was living in Scotland. 

The group told the news outlet that they “don’t recognize local laws,” and only follow the rules of their God, “Yahowah.”

“We live a very simple life of returning to innocence,” King Atehene told the outlet. “We connect to nature. We connect to the trees around us. We get grounded every morning. We bathe in the springwater. We are living a simple life of relying daily on the creator for food, shelter and clothing. We live in a tent without walls, but we are not afraid of anyone, for we have the protection of the creator, Yahowah.”

The tribe noted that not everyone has been happy with their arrival. They have been served eviction notices and have had one of their tents set on fire. 

“We follow the laws of the creator, everything belongs to the ones who made it,” King Atehene added. “We do not believe that any authority owns the land. The earth belongs to the father. We do not know about any eviction. All we know is that we are here to stay and establish our authority and power, just like our ancestors did.”

He continued: “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.”

It was unclear how many people belong to the Kingdom of Kubala and how many of those people also reside in the forest. The Scottish Borders Council is “working with Police Scotland” to manage the situation.