The State through Senior Prosecution Counsel Yamina Jami and Peter Kiprop is set to table evidence against the suspected leaders of the Shakahola starvation cult Paul Mackenzie and his co-accused.

In their opening remarks before Mombasa Chief Magistrate Alex Ithuku, the prosecution team said the evidence would demonstrate how, in pursuit of the suicide pact, the accused persons had planned to have everyone in the church die from starvation starting from the children, to their mothers, and finally their fathers in a false belief of religious victory thereafter.

In the manslaughter case facing Mackenzie and his co-accused persons, the state in efforts to prove its case against the accused persons, has lined up a total of 90 witnesses, some of who are protected.

“The evidence shall be both direct and circumstantial, with a number of the witnesses giving a first-hand account of the events that took place within the Shakahola Forest between the years 2020 and 2023,” stated Jamii.

Jami further informed the court that investigations following the reports of citizens starving themselves to death inside the Shakahola Forest within Langobaya in Malindi Sub-County led to the discovery of at least 429 bodies that had been buried in shallow graves.

Extreme practices

“In the exercise of the religious beliefs and practices, the accused persons collectively agreed to engage in starvation, among other extreme practices, leading to the loss of over 429 lives, in a manner that depicted direct and indirect suicide pacts between them aimed at such loss of lives,” he added.

“The prosecution shall lead evidence showing how, in pursuit of the suicide pact, the accused persons had planned to have everyone in the church die from starvation starting from the children, to their mothers, and finally their fathers, in a false belief of religious victory thereafter,” he added.

He added that as a result, 238 adults and over 191 children, whose innocence had been taken advantage of, had been confirmed dead from the extreme religious beliefs of the accused persons at the time of drafting the instant charges.

“The 429 victims of the pact with the accused persons, led by the 1st Accused are not just numbers. The case before you, your Honor, is not just for a trial, but for a reckoning. The case before you is not about a single crime, but a web of atrocities woven by the accused persons, the 1st accused in particular (Mackenzie). This case is about the exploitation of faith, the erosion of humanity, and the chilling cost of blind devotion,” saïd Jami.