Cult Leader Paul Mackenzie Convicted of Killing 191 Followers, Mostly Children
A court in Mombasa has found self‑styled pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and several of his associates guilty of murdering 191 people, all but one of whom were children. The verdict follows accusations that Mackenzie’s cult forced children to starve in the belief that they would “meet Jesus”.
Mackenzie founded the apocalyptic Good News International Ministries with his wife in 2003 in Malindi, a coastal town in southeastern Kenya. Before becoming a pastor he worked as a taxi driver in Nairobi. The church attracted thousands of followers across many Kenyan branches, and its sermons were broadcast on the church’s television channel, Times TV. Mackenzie claimed he could speak directly to God, and some followers reportedly sold property to donate to the group.
His teachings condemned education as “evil”, barred children from school, prohibited the use of medication, and urged members to destroy birth certificates and digital IDs. He also denounced the United States, the United Nations and the Catholic Church. After authorities began investigating his activities in the late 2010s, the church and its TV station were shut down in 2019. Mackenzie then moved to the Shakahola forest in Kilifi County, about 70 kilometres from Malindi, where many followers built mud houses and lived in isolation.
In 2023 a tip‑off from a man whose wife and daughter had joined the forest settlement prompted police to search the area. Investigators uncovered shallow mass graves and found dozens of emaciated survivors. Many of those who spoke to police said Mackenzie ordered them to starve until they “met Jesus”. The majority of the bodies exhumed were children; some victims also died from strangulation or blunt force trauma, and several people who attempted to leave the group were attacked. Hands and legs were found bound on some of the corpses.
Authorities say a total of 429 deaths have been linked to the cult, with many more victims still missing. Mackenzie himself is not believed to have starved, but survivors say his instructions targeted children first, then unmarried women, men, and finally church leaders. In January 2024 he was charged with 191 counts of murder and the group was declared an “organised criminal group”.
Mackenzie, along with 34 other members and leaders, was arrested on murder and terrorism‑related charges. Enos Amanya Ngala, the former head of security for the cult, pleaded guilty and agreed to testify for the prosecution. During a 2024 hearing, the Kenya High Court urged prosecutors to reduce the number of charges to twelve in order to speed up the trial. Mackenzie and his co‑defendants maintained their not‑guilty pleas.
Initially, 65 rescued victims were charged with attempted suicide, an offence that carries a two‑year sentence in Kenya. A Mombasa court ordered them to be held in a rescue centre and monitored, after reports that many refused food. While incarcerated, Mackenzie was accused of orchestrating an additional 52 deaths, allegedly by writing notes from his cell that lured more victims to their demise.