Sect leader sentenced to 200 years in prison for killing 191 people

The leader of the Kenyan religious sect Paul Mackenzie was sentenced to 200 years in prison for involvement in the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in the Shakahola forest. Judge Diana Kaveza Mochace was sentenced in Mombasa.

McKenzie received 100 years for 183 forced starvation murders and 8 personal murders; the sentences for each group of charges go simultaneously, and the two main ones are consecutive. The prosecutor's office had previously sought the death penalty for him, but the judge believed that saving the life of the convict would help locate the remains of the missing children and give their families answers.

On October 19, McKenzie and 28 of his followers from Good News International Ministries were found guilty. The investigation found that the leader of the sect persuaded believers and their children to refuse food for the sake of “meeting with Christ”, and his accomplices forced people to this with threats and violence. Mass graves in Shakahol were discovered in April 2023, where the remains of 448 people were found. Mackenzie himself denied guilt, but the court found his arguments untenable.