Post-mortem shows Shakahola adult cult victim ‘was suffocated’
Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, the leader of Good News International Church, with some of his followers at the Shanzu Law Courts, in Mombasa County, on May 2, 2023. They were charged over incidents of deadly fasting at Shakahola Village, Kilifi.
It has emerged that apart from children, adults too could have been victims of the Good News International church that operated in Kilifi’s Shakahola forest.
Post-mortem examination results on one of the 36 bodies examined yesterday revealed one of the adults was killed. While most of the victims of the Paul Mackenzie cult died of starvation according to the reports, three died of asphyxiation.
“Three children and one adult died of asphyxiation according to the examination conducted. One adult died of kidney and heart disease, while the majority of yesterday’s examinations show that 23 died of starvation.
For seven bodies, we were unable to ascertain the cause of death because of decomposition, while that of a child had a head injury,” government pathologist Johansen Odour said.
So far, Dr Odour’s team has conducted post-mortem examinations on 76 bodies. The other 33 could be examined tomorrow.
Separately, one male adult was yesterday rescued alive while fasting in the forest. Confirming the rescue, Coast Regional Coordinator Rhoda Onyancha said no arrests were made by yesterday.
The number of those rescued stood at 49 yesterday while those arrested were 24.
Meanwhile, Tana River Senator Danson Mungatana has been elected the chairperson of the Senate Ad Hoc Committee that will investigate the proliferation of religious organisations and the circumstances leading to the deaths of 109 people in Shakahola. Nominated Senator Shakila Abdalla was picked as the vice-chair of the committee.
Motion adopted
The team was established after senators adopted a motion by Majority Whip Boni Khalwale. It has 90 days to establish the circumstances that led to the deaths.
It will also investigate the role played by Mr Mackenzie, his pastoral team and the Kilifi County security committee in aiding and abetting the deaths of the church’s followers.
The committee is set to start its public hearings next week, beginning with Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki, Attorney General Justin Muturi and the Registrar of Societies in the Office of the Attorney General.
Among the issues the committee will seek to establish from the officers include the registration status of religious organisations and regulations, if any, in use to control religious entities and their activities.
The committee will then move to Kilifi County where it will meet the county government leadership, county commissioner, county security team and the affected families.
The lawmakers will also hold meetings with religious organisations to discuss measures that can help to avert religious extremism. Some of the organisations include the National Council of Churches of Kenya, the Hindu Council of Kenya and the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims.
