Shakahola Two: Fresh fears of cult activities in Binzaro
By Reuben Mwambingu, July 24, 2025Save for a few tourist vans headed to Malindi, the Malindi-Sala Gate road feels like a graveyard.
Snaking through sleepy villages—Kakuyuni, Jilore, Kakoneni, Marikano, Pishimwenga, Baolala, Timboni, Chakama and Zowerani—the tarmac lies hauntingly silent, the journey marked by a sense of foreboding.
This is the same corridor once used by followers of the now-notorious Paul Mackenzie, the preacher behind the Shakahola cult that horrified the nation in early 2023.
Hundreds perished under his fanatical gospel, their shallow graves later discovered in the remote Shakahola forest.
Eerily deserted
Mackenzie’s followers starved to death after he allegedly instructed them to give up worldly things so that they “could meet Jesus”.
The head of the Good News International Church is facing charges of murder, child torture and “terrorism” after hundreds of bodies of his followers were discovered in Shakahola forest.
Further into the interior, the land grows eerily deserted. Dry air chokes the atmosphere, and the acacia-strewn scrubland flanking the road looks lifeless—almost cursed.
A turn at Kwa Iddi farm leads into the thick brushland of Binzaro village, an area that has now ominously taken on the name “Shakahola Two”—a new ground zero for suspected cultic activity.
According to Haki Africa’s Rapid Response Officer, Mathias Shipeta, it all began when a family in Siaya reported a missing relative.
That alert triggered a search, which led the authorities to Binzaro. The missing man was found alive—but what emerged next was chilling.
Shipeta said the man was a former Mackenzie follower who went into hiding when the first Shakahola massacre was exposed.
Along with his wife and six children, he fled to Alego Usonga, but returned to the Coast in February 2025 under the guise of visiting the sick.
New location
“In reality, they were returning to Shakahola Two,” Shipeta told People Daily.
“This time, the remnants of Mackenzie’s followers seem to have regrouped in Binzaro, away from the original Shakahola site.”
According to local sources, as many as 50 people may have been buried in this new location since March this year.
Shipeta believes that even while behind bars, Mackenzie continues to wield influence over his followers. “Just like conmen manipulate minds from prison, he still controls this cult,” he said, calling on the government to act decisively.
John Garama Mujimba, a resident of Binzaro, yesterday said they became aware of the fresh activity following the emergence of a whistleblower.
“The man, who identified himself as Jirus, came to the trading centre on Friday, July 18, 2025, around 3 pm. He asked to borrow a phone to call his relatives in Siaya, saying he was in distress and that six children had died,” Mujimba recounted.
After the call, Jirus explained to the villagers that he had escaped from a hidden location where cult activities were ongoing. He then asked to be connected to the local chief and village elder, eventually leading them to the scene.
Later that evening, at around 8 pm, a team led by the village elder arrived at the site.
“We knocked, and a woman named Sharlene answered, claiming she had forgotten the padlock key,” Mujimba said. “We suspect that was a signal to others inside to escape.”
Inside the compound, they discovered two skulls and a freshly deceased body—three confirmed deaths. They also found shallow graves, some freshly dug, alongside food stocks and makeshift shelters.
Apocalyptic messages
“The whistleblower told us that in their practice, graves are marked by sisal plants on freshly disturbed soil. There were at least four such sites,” Mujimba said.
“These people are not from around here. We don’t know how they’re still communicating with Mackenzie.”
He added that Mackenzie had previously held a crusade at Binzaro Primary School in 2019, preaching apocalyptic messages and urging residents to shun worldly possessions.
The revelations have sparked anxiety among villagers.
Emanuel Pombe Kalu called on the government to launch a thorough investigation.
“We need the state to end this trend before it escalates. We don’t know what they’re capable of,” he said.
Jonathan Kalama voiced fears of social stigma.
“When Shakahola happened, people distanced themselves from the name. Now it’s happening here, and we are already facing that stigma,” he lamented.
Grace Sidi said the rise of cults is blurring the line between genuine and rogue religious leaders.
“Authorities must do their jobs. We pay taxes so they can protect us. And landowners should be more cautious about who they sell land to,” she said.
Rachael Zawadi Chengo said the revelations struck the community “like a sledgehammer.” She blamed inadequate security and the proximity to the vast, poorly patrolled Chakama Ranch.
“There’s no police station around this entire area. That’s why it has become a hiding place for criminals and cultists,” she said.
Even as more questions emerge over how a Shakahola sequel was allowed to take root, residents of Binzaro are left shaken, haunted by echoes of a nightmare they hoped was behind them.
It is believed Sharlene secretly and irregularly purchased five acres of land heaved off from Chakama ranch by some of the ranch elders, which she would convert into a cult.
On July 23, 2025, journalists’ attempts to access the scene were futile as armed administration police officers for anyone from entering the place; they must seek authorisation from the area Sub-County police commander.
The scene is fenced off with a ridge of thorns of dried Acacia shrubs, with the entrance closed using a gate made of dried sticks.