Full Breakdown
Convicted: Paul Mackenzie’s Shakahola Cult Found Guilty of Mass Murder
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Core Verdict and Charges
On October 19, 2026, the Mombasa High Court, presided over by Justice Diana Kavedza-Mochache, delivered a unanimous judgment finding Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and roughly 30 co-accused guilty of 191 counts of murder—190 children and one adult. The court concluded that the defendants acted in concert to implement a “structured hierarchy of death” that directed followers to fast to death. Sentencing is scheduled for November 6, 2026.
Background of the Good News International Ministries
Mackenzie founded the Good News International Ministries in 2003 in Malindi, later expanding through a television outlet, Times TV. After authorities shut down the church in 2019, he relocated his followers to the remote Shakahola forest in Kilifi County, where he preached that education, modern medicine, and state institutions were “evil” and that starvation would secure entry to heaven.
Scale of the Tragedy
- Bodies recovered: more than 400, with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights documenting 429 exhumed remains by 2024.
- Identified victims: only 26 bodies could be positively identified.
- Charges: the prosecution pursued murder charges for 191 deaths, while separate investigations continue into additional fatalities linked to the same cult activities.
Official Statements & Responses
Justice Kavedza-Mochache emphasized that the prosecution had proved the case against all 29 co-accused under Section 203 of the Penal Code. President William Ruto, who earlier said the government should have prevented the deaths, accepted political responsibility for the failure of agencies to act on earlier warnings. Prosecutors described the cult’s fasting plan as a three-phase operation—children first, then women and young men, and finally remaining men—intended to bring followers to “meet Jesus.”
Verbatim Quotes
- “Every grave we found had at least three bodies,” — James, gravedigger
- “All six of my children died in Shakahola forest,” — Stephen Mwiti, survivor
- “My mother would throw away all the medicine I was supposed to take because she believe that only God could heal me,” — Peter Shukrani, survivor
- “I am satisfied that the prosecution has proved the case against all the 29 accused persons for the murder of 190 children, and one adult, contrary to Section 203 of the Penal Code,” — Justice Kavedza, judgment
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
The trial focuses on 191 murder counts, yet forensic investigations have uncovered over 400 bodies, with the KNCHR reporting 429 exhumed remains. The discrepancy reflects the distinction between the specific charges brought before the High Court and the broader humanitarian toll of the Shakahola tragedy.
What’s Next
The court will pronounce sentences on November 6, 2026, after which additional criminal proceedings—including manslaughter, terrorism and child-cruelty charges—are expected to continue. Survivors and families have called for stricter regulation of religious organisations and for accountability of state officials whose earlier warnings were not acted upon.