Key facts
- A Kenyan court in Mombasa is sentencing Paul Mackenzie after his conviction for murdering 191 people.
- Mackenzie was found guilty alongside 27 others on October 19.
- Prosecutors argued for the death penalty for Mackenzie and life sentences for his co-accused.
- Mackenzie and the co-accused pleaded for mercy and asked the court for leniency.
- More than 400 bodies were exhumed from shallow graves in Shakahola forest.
- Mackenzie and other cult leaders face separate cases including terrorism and radicalisation.
A Kenyan court in Mombasa is sentencing Paul Mackenzie, the leader of a doomsday cult, after his conviction for murdering 191 people, all but one of them children, according to a Reuters report published on November 6, 2026. Mackenzie was found guilty alongside 27 others on October 19.
The court found that Mackenzie instructed members of his cult to starve their children to death so they could "meet Jesus". Justice Diana Mochache, delivering an eight-hour judgement, said Mackenzie's followers believed he was "Jesus's mouthpiece". She found the deaths arose from an organised system, including religious teachings and directives that compelled followers to follow the deadly fasting.
Prosecutors had argued for the death penalty for Mackenzie because of the gravity of the crimes and what they described as his lack of remorse, and requested life sentences for his co-accused. Mackenzie and the co-accused formally pleaded for mercy and asked for leniency. Before their conviction they had all pleaded not guilty and repeatedly insisted that nobody was forced to die.
Mackenzie was arrested in 2023 after the discovery of more than 400 bodies in shallow graves in Shakahola forest near the Kenyan coast. Post-mortem results showed starvation as the cause of death for most victims, while others died from suffocation, strangulation or head injuries. The cause could not be determined for some because their bodies had decomposed, and others died soon after rescue.
The case drew attention to the lack of oversight of rogue religious activities. President William Ruto set up a commission of inquiry, which was later declared unconstitutional. Investigations by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights found that local administration and law enforcement officials had repeatedly turned a blind eye to the cult's activities. Mackenzie had previously been arrested and released for lack of evidence.
Mackenzie established Good News International Ministries in 2003, and the church grew over the next 16 years, drawing thousands of followers across Kenya. It ran a television station called Times TV that broadcast his sermons from Malindi. The main church shut down in 2019 and Mackenzie moved to Shakahola forest, encouraging his devotees to follow him.
The convictions account for 191 victims, while more than 400 bodies were exhumed from the forest. Mackenzie and other cult leaders also face other cases, including for terrorism, radicalisation and denying education to children.