The Fate Of Matthew Durham In The Hands Of The Jury

There are new developments in the case against a 20-year-old Edmond missionary accused of sex crimes against orphans in Kenya.

The fate of Matthew Durham is in the hands of a jury.

After five hours of deliberations Thursday, there was no verdict.

Closing arguments were heard by a packed federal courtroom. A jury must prove Durham had intent of sexually assaulting the children he's been charged with molesting.

No cameras and no phones were allowed as the prosecution argued “something was different when Durham came back in December 2014" and that "he wanted to stay for months not weeks” on a mission trip.

6/17/15 Related Story: Closing Arguments In Matthew Durham Trial Set For Thursday

Letters were presented to the courtroom in an attempt to show Durham had inappropriate relations with multiple children. Federal prosecutors also say Durham admitted those letters were written by him.

In one of them Durham allegedly wrote, "I would force her to get on all fours, and I would touch myself." They claim Durham deleted text messages about being worried he was going to get caught and allege he called his father while in jail and told him, "They have the text messages. What am I going to do?"

Prosecutors claim Durham admitted to needing help, asked his father to help him look for mental health facilities, and told his parents he was going to burn in hell.

The defense, on the other hand, argued that Durham struggling with homosexuality has nothing to do with being a pedophile. They claim the children's testimonies were tainted, and medical reports and documents are not reliable. In fact, the defense pointed out, the person who wrote them didn't testify.

While deliberating Thursday, the jury asked for a transcript of the trial. That request was denied by the judge. Jurors then questioned Durham's confession and if it was volunteered. Just after 3pm Thursday, the jury requested to see a model of the compound in Kenya where the crimes allegedly took place.

Deliberations are set to continue at 9 a.m. Friday.