An aerial view shows the mass-grave site in Shakahola, outside the coastal town of Malindi, on April 25, 2023.
Mombasa, Kenya – New chilling details emerged on Wednesday during the ongoing Shakahola cult trial, as witnesses recounted harrowing experiences in the forest where hundreds of victims of alleged starvation rituals linked to pastor Paul Mackenzie were buried.
Appearing before a Mombasa court, Andrew Charo Baya, a 54-year-old farmer and lifelong resident of Shakahola, described his first encounter with Mackenzie and his followers on July 9, 2020.
“I saw them clearing the bush and preparing the land for farming, yet the land wasn’t theirs,” testified Baya, who would later become a key witness in the shocking case.
Baya revealed that in January 2023, he encountered a young boy, about 12 or 13 years old, who gave a chilling account of the ongoing events in the forest.
“The boy told me they were fasting until they died. They called the place Jangwani (wilderness),” he said.
Just two months later, on March 17, 2023, Baya received a distressing call from the local chief to inspect a decomposing body discovered by pastoralists at Shamba la Msimba. He later assisted in rescuing emaciated survivors and exhuming bodies, experiences he says will remain etched in his memory.
Mapping the Forest of Death
The court also heard from Michael Mwaria, a Nairobi-based land surveyor with the Ministry of Lands, who confirmed that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had requested detailed GPS mapping of the cult’s operational sites.
Mwaria and his team documented houses, water pans, holding bays, and both exhumed and unexhumed graves, painting a grim picture of the forest that has since been labeled a “graveyard of faith.”
Resurgence of the Cult
The hearing comes amid alarming new reports suggesting that Mackenzie may still be coordinating a new wave of cult activities from behind bars—claims he has denied.
Human rights group Haki Africa has sounded the alarm following the death of six children—Flora (15), Mary (14), Christine (10), Shadrach (6), Esther (4), and Tonny (1)—who were part of a family rescued in 2023 but later returned to the cult.
The children’s parents, Jairus and Lilian Atieno, allegedly deceived relatives that they were moving for work in Siaya, only to relocate secretly to Kilifi and rejoin the starvation rituals. The couple was rescued and arrested two weeks ago in the forest.
According to Mathias Shipeta, Rapid Response Officer at Haki Africa, Mackenzie and his jailed followers are still spreading their lethal gospel through mobile phones.
“The government must control phone use by those charged in Shakahola One. They are not talking to family, but continuing to preach death,” Shipeta warned.
Calls for Government Action
The revelations have triggered renewed calls for a complete crackdown on the cult and stricter prison communication policies.
“I ask the government to put an end to this Shakahola issue completely. It should not continue. It seems people are regrouping in the forest,” said Shipeta.
As investigations continue, the Shakahola saga remains one of the most haunting chapters in Kenya’s history, with lingering questions about how many more lives the cult may still claim.
