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Kenyan Cult Leader Guilty of Starving 191 to Death
· Confirmed
In Short: A Kenyan court has found Paul Mackenzie, the leader of a doomsday cult, and 28 associates guilty of murder in the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a starvation cult.
A Kenyan court has found Paul Mackenzie, the leader of a doomsday cult, and 28 associates guilty of murder in the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a starvation cult. Al Jazeera (Qatar) and The Guardian reported that the court in Mombasa handed down the verdict on Monday, with Mackenzie and his associates pleading not guilty to the charges.
According to Al Jazeera (Qatar), more than 400 people died in the Shakahola tragedy, making it one of Kenya's deadliest cult-related disasters. The Guardian reported that more than 400 bodies have been recovered from mass graves in Shakahola Forest, with only 26 of them able to be identified.
The South China Morning Post (Hong Kong) and Scmp (Hong Kong) confirmed that the court found Mackenzie and his associates guilty of murder over the deaths of 190 children and one adult. The BBC (United Kingdom) reported that the court rejected Mackenzie's argument that he did not force the victims to starve.
The Guardian reported that Mackenzie, a former taxi driver, forbade cult members from sending their children to school and from seeking medical care when ill, describing such institutions as satanic. Al Jazeera (Qatar) reported that Mackenzie and his associates organized a Christian doomsday sect in which they ordered followers to starve themselves and their children to death so they could meet Jesus in heaven before the world ended.
The Guardian and Al Jazeera (Qatar) reported that Mackenzie's former head of security, Enos Amanya Ngala, initially faced charges but entered a plea deal and became a witness for the prosecution. The BBC (United Kingdom) reported that Mackenzie and other leaders of the cult also face other legal cases, including for terrorism, radicalisation, and denying education to children.
The Guardian reported that the court heard testimony from Francis Wanje, 62, who lost eight family members, including two grandchildren, to the cult. Stephen Mwiti, 48, told the BBC (United Kingdom) that he lost all six of his children to the cult, with his former wife convicted alongside Mackenzie.
The Guardian reported that Mackenzie planned the mass starvation in three phases: first children, then women and young men, and finally the remaining men. Al Jazeera (Qatar) reported that Mackenzie and his associates were arrested in 2023 after receiving a tip-off.
The Guardian reported that Mackenzie and his associates are due to be sentenced on November 6, 2026. The BBC (United Kingdom) reported that the court rejected Mackenzie's argument that he did not force the victims to starve.
The Guardian reported that Mackenzie and his associates are also facing investigations into the deaths of 52 people in Kwa Binzaro village, about 18 miles from Shakahola. The court's judgment on Monday covered 191 deaths, with investigations into the other deaths continuing.
The accounts from Al Jazeera (Qatar), The Guardian, and the BBC (United Kingdom) agree that Paul Mackenzie and his associates were found guilty of murder in the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a starvation cult. They also agree that Mackenzie organized a doomsday sect that ordered followers to starve themselves and their children to death, and that he faces additional legal cases for terrorism, radicalisation, and denying education to children.
Background
A Kenyan court found Paul Mackenzie and 28 associates guilty of murder in the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a starvation cult.
What's confirmed
- Police arrested Mackenzie in 2023 after receiving a tip-off.
- The self-proclaimed pastor and his Good News International Church organised a Christian doomsday sect in which they ordered followers to starve themselves and their children to death, so they could go to heaven before the world ended and “meet Jesus”.
- More than 400 bodies have been recovered from mass graves discovered at the Shakahola Forest more than three years ago A Kenyan court on Monday found starvation cult leader Paul Mackenzie and about 30 others guilty of murder over the deaths of 190 children and one adult in one of the world’s worst cult-related disasters in recent history.
- “It has been really a heavy thing (for) us as a family, and it has really taken us very far in terms of psychological problems,” the 62-year-old said.
What's still developing
- Hundreds of bodies have been discovered since 2023 at the cult base inland from the Kenyan beach resort of Malindi, in what became known as the "Shakahola Forest Massacre."
- Justice Diana Kavedza Mochache said in a hearing lasting more than eight hours that in some cases children were isolated and denied food while their parents watched.
- Prosecutors said Mackenzie had “initiated and directed” extreme fasting at his 800-acre (325-hectare) ranch in Shakahola Forest.