Controversial preacher Paul Nthenge Mackenzie has been sentenced to 200 years in prison for the murder of 191 people at Shakahola Forest in Malindi, Kilifi County.
The sentence was handed down on Friday by High Court Judge Diana Kavedza, who also sentenced 26 co-convicts to prison terms ranging from 10 to 160 years following their conviction over the deaths that occurred between January 2021 and September 2023.
Fifteen convicts received 160-year jail terms, while 10 others were sentenced to 140 years. Another convict was handed a 100-year sentence, while Enos Amanya Ngala and Lucas Owino received 10-year prison terms each.
Amanya was sentenced after entering into a plea-bargaining agreement with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), admitting guilt to all 191 murder counts.
The court found that the prosecution had proved its case, establishing the deaths of 190 children and one adult through starvation and other forms of violence.
In her judgment, Justice Kavedza said starvation was established as the cause of death in 72 cases, while other victims died from asphyxia, manual neck compression and traumatic head injuries. In 110 cases, the exact cause of death could not be determined because of decomposition. However, the court found that the circumstances surrounding the deaths supported the conclusion that the victims had died under the fasting regime.
The court further established that Mackenzie radicalised followers of his Good News International Church through teachings that rejected formal education, modern medicine and government institutions, which he portrayed as satanic.
His followers were reportedly instructed to abandon their jobs, sell their property, withdraw children from school and relocate to Chakama Ranch, where settlements were organised into biblical villages.
The court heard that Mackenzie directed his followers to fast to death to meet Jesus, with children expected to die first, followed by youths, women and men, before Mackenzie and his family.
Those who resisted the instructions were subjected to violence, confinement and the withholding of food and water.
Justice Kavedza also emphasised that parental responsibility requires parents to protect children’s lives, health and welfare, adding that no parent has the legal right to subject a child to death in pursuit of religious beliefs.
The prosecution team was led by the Director of Public Prosecutions and included Peter Kiprop, Jami Yamina, Victor Owiti, Ngina Mutua, Betty Rubia and Yassir Mohammed.