Kenyan court sentences cult leader Paul Mackenzie to 200 years for Shakahola killings

A Kenyan court has sentenced doomsday cult leader Paul Mackenzie to 200 years in prison for the murders of 191 people, most of them children. The ruling was delivered in Mombasa and follows his conviction in October in the Shakahola forest mass killing case. The court said Mackenzie bore primary responsibility for ordering followers to starve their children to death.

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Justice Diana Mochache said the sentence was intended to send an unmistakable message that such crimes warrant the maximum penalties allowed by law. Prosecutors had asked for the death penalty, arguing that the scale of the killings and Mackenzie's lack of remorse justified the harshest punishment available. They also sought life sentences for his co-accused, 27 of whom were found guilty alongside him.

The case centres on one of Kenya's deadliest episodes of religious extremism. According to the court, Mackenzie instructed members of his cult to fast to death so they could "meet Jesus", and followers who resisted were beaten. The judge said the deaths arose from an organised system inside the forest, where burials were referred to as "weddings" and the dead were described as having "wedded with Jesus".

The sentencing comes after the discovery in 2023 of more than 400 bodies in shallow graves in Shakahola forest near the Kenyan coast. That discovery triggered a sprawling investigation that shocked Kenya and drew international attention. The scale of the deaths, and the fact that most victims were children, has made the case a major test of the country's response to violent religious abuse and mass harm.

The proceedings have also highlighted the role of Mackenzie's followers, who believed he was "Jesus's mouthpiece", according to the court. Before the hearing, relatives of victims said they were hoping for a sentence that matched the scale of the crimes. One man who lost eight relatives, including two grandchildren, said he wanted a punishment that reflected what happened in the forest.

What remains unclear is how the wider legal process will continue for the co-accused and whether further proceedings will follow in related cases. The court has already rejected the defendants' pleas for mercy, and they had previously denied forcing anyone to die. The sentencing closes one major stage of the case, but the investigation into the full extent of the Shakahola deaths has already shown how far the killings spread and how deeply they affected families across Kenya.

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