Environment
A Kenyan religious preacher who predicted the end of the world, Paul Mackenzie, and 28 of his associates has been found guilty of murdering 191 people, including 190 children.
A Kenyan religious preacher who predicted the end of the world, Paul Mackenzie, and 28 of his associates has been found guilty of murdering 191 people, including 190 children. The victims were associated with a religious group whose followers were allegedly forced to starve themselves in order to enter heaven before the end of the world. According to the court, the children were first deprived of food, while those who tried to escape or eat were subjected to violence.
The case came to light in 2023 when police began excavating mass graves in Shakahola Forest, near Kenya’s coastal region. Authorities said more than 400 bodies were recovered from the site, many of them belonging to children. The incident also raised questions in Kenya about the monitoring of religious groups and whether authorities had failed to act in time. Mackenzie denied the charges, arguing that he had not forced anyone to starve. However, the court rejected his defense. Mackenzie and his associates are expected to be sentenced on November 6, 2026. He is also facing separate proceedings over other deaths and terrorism-related charges.
It is worth noting that Mackenzie, a former taxi driver, founded the Good News International Church in 2003. He increasingly preached about the imminent end of the world and urged his followers to starve themselves and their children to death.
