Postmortem performed on 10 bodies of victims of Shakahola cult has established starvation as the main cause of the deaths. Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor, who led the exercise that kicked off at Malindi Sub-County Hospital mortuary yesterday also established majority of bodies examined were children. Out of the first 10 bodies examined, nine were of children while the remaining one was of a female adult, Dr Oduor said.

According to Oduor, seven out of the nine children died of starvation while two died as a result of asphyxiation—deficient supply of oxygen to the body. He said it was difficult to establish the exact cause of the female adult since the body was badly decomposed. The chief pathologist jetted into Malindi yesterday, and is leading a team of Government Pathologists who are conducting the exercise in presence of detectives from the Homicide Unit, forensic experts among other expertise.

Earlier on, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki had earlier said that among other things, postmortem on the 109 bodies exhumed in Shakahola forest will be seeking to unravel whether there was harvesting of body organs. Kindiki indicated that the week-long exercise is intended to establish circumstances under which the victims died.

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Speaking to the press yesterday, Kindiki said the pathologists will also be targeting to prove the theory of organ harvesting, which has been linked to the Kilifi cult led by controversial pastor Paul Mackenzie, founder of Good News International Church. “If any of our people have their organs missing we will tell the world, there is nothing we are hiding and we will have to find out why those organs are missing, who took them and to where,” Kindiki said.

He also said the postmortem will take at least one week to be completed. He, however, clarified that DNA tests and matching of samples of the dead and family members might take over one month as it was a technical process. The CS urged the public to maintain patience as the government embarks on the process to uncover the exact truth about the harrowing Shakahola massacre. So far, he said the government has resorted to using technology to conduct the operation in the 800 acre parcel of land. Kindiki said the government will deploy drones and helicopters once the logistics arrangements are over.

“We are here to witness the commencement of a very critical stage concerning what happened to our people in Shakahola forest. I am sure everybody knows the facts around the incidents that are here today,” he said. So far, 110 bodies have been exhumed, however, the exercise was stopped temporarily due to bad weather.

The Interior CS revealed that there is a team of three; pathologists, DCI Homicide Unit and forensic units for purposes of DNA and the team from government chemists that will deal with toxicology and other tests that will be required. “Anytime from now members of the commission of inquiry on the Shakahola tragedy will be announced,” he said, adding that President William Ruto said apart from the commission there will be a multiagency task force to help in preventing such incidents in future.

Kindiki further noted that autopsy findings are expected to assist in building a water-tight case against the perpetrators. Last Wednesday, the government declared Shakahola village within Chakama Ranch a crime scene and imposed curfew between 6pm and 6am for 30 days. Kindiki also declared the ranch a disturbed area where no access by the public is permitted.

Malindi Chief Magistrate also granted investigating officers orders to search and seize all property belonging to Mackenzie and eight other suspects. The search seeks to retrieve bank details or documents, title deeds, sale agreement, motor vehicle details and any other document and item linked to the offences of terrorism, radicalisation, murder and any other charges that will be preferred against them. Mackenzie, according to the Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji, may face terror charges and may have committed serious crimes including murder, procuring, counseling and aiding persons to kill themselves, terrorist acts and radicalisation.

Detectives have so far arrested 14 members of the cult, while another 36 have been rescued from starvation. Extensive discussions President William Ruto said he will form a judicial inquiry to conduct investigations into the massacre. The President noted that he will hold extensive discussions with spiritual leaders from across the country to develop a legal framework within which religious centres will operate. “I will hold consultations with our religious leaders to have a taskforce so that we can weed out characters who want to abuse religion to run businesses and things that are anti-religion,” the President said. Last Thursday, the Judiciary shared status of cases involving Mackenzie that are or have been before court.

The pastor and his co-accused have a court history dating back to March 2017. In the case, Mackenzie and two other suspects were jointly charged with the offence of offering basic education in an unregistered institution. They, however, later entered a plea bargain with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution and were discharged by the trial court and ordered to be of good behaviour. He was later arraigned on October 17, 2017 on four counts including radicalisation and failing to take his children to school.

He pleaded not guilty and was on October 29, 2021 acquitted. Later, on April 11, 2019, Mackenzie was accused of disobedience of law and being in possession of and distributing films which had not been examined by the Kenya Film Classification Board.

Televangelist Ezekiel Odero has distanced himself from Pastor Paul Mackenzi who is suspected of indoctrinating his followers to starve to death.

In a new affidavit sworn by Odero through lawyer Danstan Omari, Odero says he is not close to Mackenzie. He says their relationship was purely commercial.

The New Life Prayer Centre and Church preacher said he does not support any of Mackenzie’s controversial teachings.

He says he started the ministry in 2010 in Mtwapa and has denied burying anyone at Shakahola as claimed.

Odero said he has never been at the forest because it is very far from Mavueni, his area of operation.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the infamous Shakahola is approximately 200 kilometers from my church and it is unimaginable that I am capable of transporting dead bodies to the forest which I have never been to,” Odero states in the affidavit.

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He further argues that he should not be punished for having a failed commercial transaction with Mackenzie in the past.

“At the outset, I would wish to strongly disassociate myself from one Paul Mackenzie as we do not have any close family or friendly ties. Moreover, my teachings, initiatives and focus in and out of church are completely at variance with those that Mackenzie is feared to be advocating for,” the preacher states in his affidavit.

Odero was arrested on April 27 after his church was linked to the discovery of the Shakahola mass graves where 110 bodies have so far been dug out.

He told police through lawyer Cliff Ombeta that only 15 congregants of his church have died. All the deaths, he said, were reported to police.

Odero states in his affidavit that he never bought Times TV from Mackenzie as claimed by police but confirms that they indeed met around three times when he was trying to buy the TV station which belonged to Mackenzie, but the deal never went through.

He says he met Mackenzie for the first time during the negotiations for the TV station which they agreed to purchase at Sh3 million. He paid Sh500,000 as down payment.

Odero further says that because he was not in agreement with the teachings of Mackenzi, he was determined to rebrand the whole Times TV station in order to give it a new and fresh look and purpose.

“I wish to categorically state that I do not own Times TV and that I equally don’t own or run a hospital or a mortuary. For the avoidance of doubt, the private mortuary that is close to New Life Prayer Centre and Church is approximately 11 kilometers away and is not in any way associated with the church,” he states in the affidavit.

The preacher further says that he acquired another frequency that birthed World Evangelism TV and consequently abandoned the oral agreement between himself and Mackenzie.

The Communications Authority of Kenya has since closed the two TV stations as the two preachers remain in police custody.

Odero has contested his detention saying it’s unwarranted.

“There is no exceptional circumstances in this case or grave public interest in the matter that would warrant my continued detention under police custody.

“In any event, it is wholly unlawful for the state to close my Television Station, frustrate my ministry at New Life Prayer Center and Church and threaten the freezing of the church bank accounts,” Odero states in his affidavit.