In a shocking development in the Kenya mass grave case, police exhumed more bodies, resulting in the death toll crossing the 400-mark on Monday. According to the local media report, authorities recovered at least 12 bodies on July 17. The death toll reached 403.
It is worth mentioning the shocking news that broke in April this year when many went missing "mysteriously" from a forested area in Malindi, coastal Kenya. Later, the villagers came to know that Paul Mackenzie Nthenge, a "renowned" and "controversial" preacher, asked their followers to push themselves into starvation in order "to meet Jesus". Since then, authorities inducted several detectives in order to track mass graves in the region.
The preacher claims he shut down his church in 2019
Local media reported that the police arrested him on April 15 after discovering the bodies of four people suspected of having starved themselves to death. When police asked the preacher about his religious practices, he denied any wrongdoings and claimed he had shut down his church around four years ago.
Notably, this was not the first time that such a gruesome development shook the whole world. Kenya is a religious country and there have been previous cases of people being lured into dangerous, unregulated churches or cults.
Over 600 were reported missing
Last month, some suspects and people rescued started a hunger strike in prison and at the rescue centre, prompting the prosecutor to take them to court for attempting to kill themselves. Most of them agreed to resume eating, but one suspect died in custody.
Some 613 people have so far been reported missing to Kenya Red Cross officers stationed in Malindi town. Detectives are still finding mass graves. Onyancha said 253 of the 403 bodies had undergone DNA matching. Pathologists had earlier said most of the bodies were decomposed.
Mackenzie moved to the forested area in 2019 after his church was closed over his preaching, which included asking children not to go to school.
He was previously arrested and released on bond over the disappearance of children. A judicial commission of inquiry formed by President William Ruto to establish what happened and who was liable was quashed by a court order after opposition leader Raila Odinga filed a petition against it.
The president had said what transpired in Malindi was “akin to terrorism” and vowed to crack down on “those using religion to advance their heinous acts”.
