A self-proclaimed cult leader in Kenya named Paul McKenzie has been sentenced to 200 years in prison. He is accused of murdering 190 children and one adult in a starvation cult, and the verdict was issued on October 6, 2023.
Shakahola Forest Massacre
Since 2023, hundreds of bodies have been discovered at the cult's base near the coastal resort of Malindi. These incidents are referred to as the 'Shakahola Forest Massacre.' McKenzie, who was previously a taxi driver, has been accused of encouraging his followers to starve themselves in order to 'meet Jesus.'
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Sentence and Reactions
In September 2023, McKenzie was convicted of the murder of 191 people, including 28 of his accomplices. The court sentenced him to 100 years for murder charges and 100 years for charges of starving prisoners. His accomplices, many of whom had allowed their children to die of starvation, received lengthy sentences. The judge stated, 'The children witnessed the deaths of their siblings while their parents were eating food and drinking water. Some of them died from choking or severe beating.'
McKenzie was emotionless while the verdict was read, just as he had been throughout the trial. Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for him, but the judge stated that this punishment could not deter crime, especially in circumstances where the convicted see death as a path to heaven and a connection with Jesus and their deceased children.
Kenya has the death penalty, but the last execution took place in 1987. One of the plaintiffs, 62-year-old Francis Wanje, a teacher who lost two grandchildren in this incident, expressed hope that McKenzie would be sentenced to death to prevent similar occurrences.
McKenzie also faces charges of manslaughter and terrorism in other cases, to which he has pleaded not guilty. During the trial, about 120 witnesses testified in favor of the prosecution. The cult had labeled formal education as 'satanic' and modern medicine as a tool of the devil.
McKenzie was arrested in April 2023 after a warning from a human rights group, and some of his followers were rescued from a 325-acre farm in Shakahola forest.
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