Xihe! Kenyan cult leader convicted of murdering nearly 200 children, could face death sentence

Paul Mackenzie, the starvation cult leader in the East African country of Kenya and the main suspect in the Shakahola Forest Massacre who was convicted of murdering 190 children last month, will be sentenced by the court on the 6th and may be sentenced to death.

Markensi, who founded the Good News International Church and claimed to be a pastor, brainwashed followers to "meet Jesus" through hunger strikes and starvation. Since 2023, authorities have successively discovered hundreds of corpses at the cult's base camp near the eastern coast town of Malindi, and Markensi was subsequently arrested.

Last month, Mackensi and 28 other co-defendants were found guilty of murdering 190 children and one adult from January 2021 to September 2023. Mackensi's lawyer said he would appeal. Mackensi also faces charges of manslaughter and terrorism, but he denies these charges.

Mackensi looked indifferent when he arrived at the court on the 6th to hear sentencing. He was wearing a Polo shirt and a faint smile on his face.

Kenyan prosecutors recently asked the court to impose the death penalty on the grounds that Makensi's actions caused a large number of deaths and constituted a major threat. However, they still need to consider whether the sentence can be reduced and whether there is remorse and the possibility of reform. Although Kenya has the death penalty, it has not carried out executions since 1987.

Francis Wanje, a 62-year-old teacher who lost two grandchildren in the forest massacre, said he hoped that Makensi would be sentenced to death to prevent similar tragedies from happening again. He was also dissatisfied with the authorities for failing to take action earlier. "I am very angry with the authorities." Mackensi was arrested twice before the forest massacre and was arrested, but was later released.

According to data released by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights in 2024, the death toll in the Shakahela Forest Massacre reached 429, and some of the victims are still unknown.