Kenyan doomsday preacher faces verdict over murder of 191 children

A Kenyan court is set to deliver a judgement in a mass murder case involving doomsday preacher Paul Mackenzie. Mackenzie and 29 of his followers are being charged with the murder of 191 children. This is the first time the pastor will face a verdict on the most serious charges of murder.

Prosecutors say Mackenzie lured the latest victims to their deaths by writing notes from his prison cell. His cult is alleged to have forced children to starve to death so that they could 'meet Jesus'. His doomsday doctrine said that education was forbidden and modern medicine was considered 'evil'.

Mackenzie and the 29 others have all pleaded not guilty to murder, repeatedly insisting that nobody was forced to die. Mackenzie's former head of security, Enos Amanya Ngala, was initially accused but then entered a plea deal and became a witness for the prosecution.

Mackenzie and other leaders of the cult are facing a raft of other legal cases, including for terrorism, radicalisation and denying education to children. But this is the first time the pastor will face a verdict on the most serious charges of murder.

Authorities said over 400 bodies were found in shallow graves in Shakahola forest near the Kenyan coast, where Mackenzie led his followers from across the country.

Seventeen men were hired from the nearby town for the horrifying task of digging up the shallow graves. Some were paid just $8 a day. James, one of the gravediggers, said: 'Every grave we found had at least three bodies. Some of the remains were of children as young as a few weeks old.'

James added: 'We once found 12 bodies of children in a line inside a grave. It was massive, the bodies were arranged like clothes. One on top of another.' Gravediggers described some of the bodies of children as having had their 'hands and legs tied and bodies wrapped in bedsheets'.

Salim Karisa, another gravedigger, dug up dozens of bodies for about $8 a day. He said they would sometimes carry people on their motorbikes into the forest. 'But it was so planned and secretive that nobody could tell what was happening inside.'

Stephen Mwiti, 48, lost all six of his children to the cult. When he went to confront Mackenzie, he saw 'many bald women and tens of children' surrounding him at his house. Mackenzie forbade make-up and hairstyles, so he told women to shave off their hair or keep it unkempt.

'If I met Pastor Mackenzie today, one of us will have to die,' Mwiti said. Visibly emotional, he added: 'All six of my children died in Shakahola forest. I only found and buried the remains of my son Samuel.' Mwiti's former wife is one of those accused alongside Mackenzie.

Pointing at a dusty TV and cable box in his home in the coastal town of Malindi, Mwiti said: 'This little thing here was the start of all my misery.' It was from that TV that Mackenzie's doctrine reached his home.

The pastor established Good News International Ministries in 2003. Over the next 16 years, the church grew in popularity to draw thousands of followers in the church's branches across Kenya. His church ran a television station called Times TV which would broadcast his sermons from his church in Malindi. His End Days sermons described education as 'evil', healthcare as 'against the doctrine' and digital identity cards as 'the mark of the devil'.

The main church shut down in 2019 and Paul Mackenzie moved to Shakahola forest, encouraging his devotees to follow him. Mackenzie's son, Dan Paul Mackenzie, said he worked as a cameraperson in the church. But he does not stand by his father: in his view, 'He was the leader, he was someone who they were looking up to. So he is a murderer of mass killing.'

On the other hand, 23-year-old Peter Shukrani's mother relocated to Shakahola with him. He started going to Mackenzie's church when he was eight years old and described him as his 'spiritual father'. While in the forest, Shukrani fell ill and his condition deteriorated because medication was banned. He was rescued in March 2023. Yet he believes Mackenzie is 'a good person' — 'Mackenzie didn't force anyone to fast. People made those choices by themselves because of their beliefs.'

In the 298 pages detailing the charges in the current case, all of the 191 victims Mackenzie and his followers are accused of murdering are children. Many of the bodies are still unidentified, owing to their advanced state of decomposition. In the court documents, several are referred to as 'unknown male child', identified by the location of their grave and the date of discovery.

The grieving families of the dead children and the whole of Kenya are now waiting for this verdict. After this horrifying chapter of deaths by starvation, strangulation and even bludgeoning, the court's judgement is being seen as the first step of justice.