KENYAN COURT CONVICTS PASTOR AND FOLLOWERS OF 191 MURDERS

A Kenyan court convicted Paul Mackenzie and 29 of his followers of 191 murders, including those of 190 children and one adult. Justice Diana Mochache delivered the verdict at Mombasa Law Courts on 19 October. She said the defendants were convicted on "all 191 counts of murder". The hearing lasted more than eight hours, and her judgement ran to 1,000 pages.

Local herders found human remains in Shakahola Forest in 2023, prompting an investigation. Kenyan authorities later discovered more than 400 bodies in shallow graves in the forest, near the coast, and arrested Mackenzie and his co-defendants. Mochache’s judgement described children being denied food while their parents watched. Good News International Ministries had persuaded parents to let their children starve so they could meet Jesus. Mackenzie closed his church operation in 2019 and moved to Shakahola Forest, where he allegedly encouraged followers to join him.

Mackenzie established Good News International Ministries in 2003. The group later drew thousands of followers to branches across Kenya. Mackenzie also operated Times TV, which broadcast his sermons about the end of the world. In those broadcasts, he called education "evil" and described medical care as "against the doctrine". The court will sentence the defendants next month.