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Kenyan court convicts starvation cult leader of murdering 191 people
Al Jazeera • • world
Key Points:
- A Kenyan court found cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 28 associates guilty of murder for the deaths of 191 people, mostly children, who starved themselves under his orders in a doomsday sect.
- Mackenzie’s Good News International Church promoted extreme fasting to hasten followers’ deaths to "meet Jesus," leading to mass graves discovered in Shakahola Forest after his 2023 arrest.
- The defendants denied charges including murder, terrorism, radicalization, and preventing children’s education, but the court rejected these claims and scheduled sentencing for November 6.
- Over 400 deaths are linked to the cult, making it one of Kenya’s deadliest cult tragedies, sparking national outrage over religious extremism and government oversight failures.
- Families of victims, like Francis Wanje who lost eight relatives, expressed deep psychological trauma, while calls grow for stricter regulation of religious groups in Kenya.
