Controversial preacher Paul Nthenge Mackenzie will face fresh murder charges alongside six co-accused persons tied to the deaths of some 52 people associated with the second wave of cult-linked deaths at Kwa Bi Nzaro area in Kilifi County.
The new development comes in the wake of ongoing investigations into the cult site near Malindi where shallow graves and human remains were discovered during the ongoing searches that were sparked by the initial Shakahola forest massacre, two years ago.
The cult leader is already facing prosecution over the deaths of hundreds of his followers in Shakahola forest, including 191 children, and which remains active in court proceedings.
State prosecutors revealed they will file new murder charges against Mackenzie and six co-accused persons in connection with the Kwa Bi Nzaro deaths, which is part of the second phase of probe into cult teachings and radicalization.
The evidence gathered so far, according to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), links the 52 deaths to a similar ideology of extreme fasting, isolation from medical care, and radicalized religious instruction, like the Shakahola one.
Different court testimonies in the ongoing proceedings have revealed links between Mackenzie and a priestess allegedly involved in the Kwa Bi Nzaro activities and who some of the witnesses said was at the centre of recruitment.
In the original Shakahola case, one of Kenya’s worst cult-related tragedies, authorities say Mackenzie instructed followers to starve themselves and their children to death to “meet Jesus.”
Autopsies of exhumed victims from that incident showed starvation as a primary cause of death alongside physical harm in some cases.
Additionally, one of Mackenzie’s co-accused in the Shakahola case- Enos Amanya, alias “Hallelujah” recently reached a plea agreement, confessing to involvement in the deaths of 191 children and agreeing to testify against Mackenzie and others.
Meanwhile, police and forensic teams say more surface graves and potential mass burial sites remain under examination as the probe expands beyond both Shakahola forest and Kwa Bi Nzaro site.
