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Kenyan cult leader Paul Mackenzie faces sentencing for murder

Published

A Kenyan court is due to sentence Paul Mackenzie on Friday, after convicting him in October of murdering 190 children and one adult. Prosecutors want the death penalty for the self-proclaimed pastor, and his lawyer said he would appeal.

Mackenzie led a starvation cult in the Shakahola Forest. He was convicted of murders committed between January 2021 and September 2023. Twenty-eight co-accused were convicted with him. Around 120 prosecution witnesses testified during the trial.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions urged a death sentence for Mackenzie, subject to his mitigation, remorse and prospects of rehabilitation. Prosecutors asked for life imprisonment for the co-accused. They said these defendants were deeply indoctrinated and at risk of reoffending.

Prosecutors say Mackenzie told followers to starve themselves and their children to go to heaven before the world ended. Mackenzie said he did not force anyone to starve. He also denies separate charges of manslaughter and terrorism.

Stephen Mwiti, aged 48, lost six children in the forest after his wife took them there in 2022. He said he fears Mackenzie may keep spreading his messages from prison. He hopes the defendants would be held in solitary confinement if jailed.

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights put the 2024 death toll at 429. Officials could confirm the identities of only 26 of the more than 400 bodies. Kenya last carried out an execution in 1987.

Key facts

Who
Paul Mackenzie (Kenyan starvation cult leader, convicted of murder, to be sentenced on Friday); Stephen Mwiti (father whose six children died in the Shakahola Forest); Samuel (Mwiti's son, one of the victims); Jami Yamina (Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions)
What
Ahead of Paul Mackenzie's sentencing, Stephen Mwiti, whose six children died in the Shakahola Forest after his wife took them there in 2022, described his grief and hopes that the defendants would be held in solitary confinement. Mackenzie and 28 co-defendants were convicted last month of murder and could face the death penalty.
When
6 November 2026
Where
Shakahola Forest, Malindi, Kenya
Status
Reported

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