A Kenyan court has found self-proclaimed pastor Paul Mackenzie guilty of murdering 191 people as part of a catastrophic doomsday cult operation. The Mombasa Law Court delivered the verdict on Monday, confirming that Mackenzie and dozens of his associates were responsible for the deaths of 190 children and one adult within his Good News International Church.
Prosecutors established that Mackenzie orchestrated a system of extreme fasting at his 800-acre (325-hectare) ranch in Shakahola Forest, Southeastern Kenya. The group allegedly followed a strictly enforced “hierarchy of death,” which mandated that children perish first, followed by teenagers, women, and finally men, with the stated goal of helping followers reach heaven to “meet Jesus” before the end of the world. Authorities began uncovering bodies in shallow graves in the Shakahola Forest near the coast in southeastern Kenya, after some weeks.
Authorities first apprehended Mackenzie in 2023 following a tip-off, which led to the grim discovery of mass graves in the forest. While the cult leader consistently maintained that he did not coerce his followers into starvation, the court formally rejected these claims. Throughout the proceedings, Mackenzie and his co-defendants also denied related charges of terrorism, radicalisation, and preventing children from accessing education. But that was dismissed by the court, mackenzie insisted that he did not force the victims to starve.
The Shakahola disaster remains one of the deadliest cult-related tragedies in Kenyan history, with government figures indicating that over 400 lives were lost in total. The investigation into these deaths exposed systemic issues, revealing that Mackenzie had been arrested twice previously only to be released on both occasions before the full scale of his activities came to light.
Families of the deceased gathered at the Mombasa court to hear the final judgment. Among those present was 62-year-old Francis Wanje, who lost eight family members, including two grandchildren, to the cult. Wanje described the ordeal as an immense psychological burden that has deeply affected his entire family. “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.
In the wake of the tragedy, the government has faced intensifying pressure to implement more rigorous oversight of religious organizations. This case has triggered a national conversation regarding the state’s failure to intervene before the situation escalated to such a scale.
The court has scheduled the sentencing hearing for Mackenzie and his convicted associates for November 6.
