Paul Mackenzie and 95 co-accused have case to answer

A court in Shanzu has ruled that controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie and his 95 co-accused have a case to answer over allegations of organised crime and radicalisation linked to the deaths of more than 450 followers in Shakahola forest.

In a ruling delivered on Thursday, April 2, 2026, the court found that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against all the accused persons, placing them on their defence.

The decision marks a major milestone for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), which had alleged that Mackenzie used the Good News International (GNI) Church to radicalise followers through distorted biblical teachings over more than a decade.

The prosecution built its case through 96 witnesses, including survivors, investigators and experts, and tabled nearly 500 exhibits, which the court found sufficient to require the accused to respond.

Witness testimony presented before the Shanzu Law Courts painted a disturbing picture of a sustained and deliberate campaign of radicalisation between 2020 and 2023 in Furunzi, Malindi.

The court heard that followers were allegedly indoctrinated into extreme beliefs, including fasting to death as a pathway to salvation, which later culminated in mass deaths uncovered in Shakahola forest.

“The prosecution has placed before this court sufficient evidence that requires the accused persons to be put on their defence,” the court ruled, noting that the threshold for a prima facie case had been met.

Mackenzie, his wife Rhoda Mumbua Maweu, and the other co-accused deny multiple terror-related charges, including facilitating terrorist acts and promoting extremist doctrines that allegedly led to loss of life.

Following the ruling, the accused told the court they intend to defend themselves, indicating they will give sworn testimony and call 13 witnesses in their defence.

This will now mark the beginning of the defence phase in the high-profile trial, which has drawn national and international attention.

The ruling comes months after the prosecution closed its case following extensive hearings that began on July 8, 2024.

The DPP had earlier submitted that Mackenzie and his co-accused ran a decade-long system of religious radicalisation that culminated in one of the deadliest mass casualty incidents in Kenya’s history.

In January, the prosecution formally closed its case after hearing testimony from 96 witnesses, including survivors of the Shakahola tragedy, forensic experts, medical professionals, and investigators who pieced together the events that unfolded in the forest.

Nearly 500 exhibits were presented in court, with prosecutors arguing that the deaths were neither accidental nor voluntary, but the result of a carefully orchestrated system of indoctrination, isolation and control.

The Shanzu court is also handling related proceedings in what has become one of the most complex legal processes in the country.