191 people died in a starvation cult; Kenyan court convicts leader Mackenzie of murder

Ruling covers 191 deaths

Justice Diana Kavedza Mochache delivered the decision after a hearing that lasted more than eight hours. The court found Mackenzie and about 30 co-defendants guilty of murder. Mackenzie was present in court beside his wife, who is also a defendant. Families of people who died gathered at Mombasa High Court to hear the judgment.

The case concerns 190 children and one adult. Investigations into other deaths are still underway, though more than 400 bodies have been recovered from Shakahola Forest.

Court rejects Mackenzie’s defense

Prosecutors said Mackenzie and his church organized a Christian doomsday group and instructed members to starve themselves and their children. They said followers were told this would help them reach heaven before the world ended.

Mackenzie denied the murder allegations and said he had not forced victims to stop eating. The court dismissed that argument. The judge said some children had been kept apart and refused food while their parents watched. Francis Wanje, 62, said he lost eight relatives, including two grandchildren.

Questions over oversight

The deaths have drawn attention across Kenya since mass graves were found in the coastal forest more than three years ago. The case has prompted demands for stronger supervision of churches and other religious groups.

Police had searched Mackenzie’s premises in 2017, according to the account of the case. Authorities closed his church in 2019, and police said he then moved to Shakahola Forest.

Relatives said Mackenzie was released on bail after an earlier arrest and then moved up the date he had given followers for the world’s end. Police arrested him again in April 2023 and began more systematic searches and exhumations.

Reported structure of the group

People with direct knowledge of the group’s activities told Reuters that Mackenzie arranged the starvation in three stages. They said children were first, followed by women and young men, and then the remaining men.

Members lived in makeshift shelters made from polythene sheeting and thatch. Mackenzie divided the settlement into areas with biblical names, including Jerusalem and Judea.