In Kenya, 200 years in prison for the guru of a sect which starved its followers, responsible for hundreds of deaths

The guru of an apocalyptic evangelical sect was sentenced to 200 years in prison on Friday, November 6. He was convicted of murdering 190 children and one adult, after encouraging his disciples to starve to "meet Jesus". Hundreds of bodies were discovered in 2023 in the hinterland near the beaches of Malindi, in the South. The media quickly called this affair the "Shakahola forest massacre", one of the worst tragedies linked to sectarian excesses which has traumatized the East African country.

Paul Mackenzie, wearing a gray polo shirt, displayed an indifferent look, smirking, as he arrived at court with the rest of the convicts. Hours of reading the sentence later, Judge Diana Kavedza Mochache sentenced him to 100 years of imprisonment for each of the 183 victims who died of starvation and an equivalent sentence for eight others who died by "direct homicide", these sentences having according to her to be served simultaneously to "result in a total sentence of 200 years of imprisonment". The defense lawyer said his clients would appeal.

Mass graves unearthed

The prosecution had requested the death penalty for the guru at the beginning of the week, a provision included in Kenyan law, but which has not been carried out since 1987. "For individuals who perceive death as a deliverance, a death sentence could not be experienced as a sanction, but as a triumph and a form of martyrdom", detailed the judge.

Paul Mackenzie had "directed" the practice of fasting according to a "hierarchy of death", according to testimonies: children first, then adolescents, women then, and finally men. His movement considered modern medicine and hospitals as instruments of the devil, and denounced formal education as "satanic", according to witnesses heard at the trial. The followers were to retreat from the world to a 325 hectare ranch, located in a vast "bush" area of ​​the Kenyan coast.