Kenyan prosecutors announced on Tuesday their intention to charge self-proclaimed cult leader Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and dozens of others with murder and terrorism.
The charges stem from the deaths of over 400 of Mackenzie’s followers, who were allegedly incited to starve to death in a shocking case that garnered global attention.
Mackenzie, a former taxi driver, was arrested in April last year after bodies were discovered in a forest near the Indian Ocean coast. His pre-trial detention has been extended multiple times during prolonged investigations.
Following a court warning that Mackenzie might be released, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) stated that there is sufficient evidence to prosecute 95 suspects.
The charges against Mackenzie and his co-accused include murder, manslaughter, terrorism, and “subjecting a child to torture.”
The timeline for the suspects’ court appearance remains unclear, but prosecutors have committed to expeditiously handling the matters. Autopsies revealed that the majority of the victims died of hunger, while some, including children, showed signs of strangulation, beating, or suffocation.
The discovery of the bodies, known as the “Shakahola forest massacre,” has prompted the Kenyan government to emphasize the need for tighter control over fringe denominations. A Senate commission of inquiry reported that Mackenzie had faced charges in 2017 for extreme preaching, but the criminal justice system failed to deter his activities in Shakahola.
Despite facing accusations in 2019 related to the deaths of two children, Mackenzie was released on bail pending trial. Kenya, a predominantly Christian nation, continues to grapple with the challenge of regulating unscrupulous churches and cults involved in criminal activities amid the existence of over 4,000 registered churches in the country.
