Cult in the forest, Chapter 1: Families lost, property sold and money unaccounted
For many, Shakahola followed a process of mobilisation, persuasion and radicalization.
Pastor Paul Mackenzie follows proceedings when High Court Judge Justice Wendy Kagendo visited his homestead within Shakahola Forest in Malindi Sub-county June 24, 2026.
More than 400 lives lost. Families shattered. Fortunes surrendered. A preacher whose deadly influence went unchecked. Shakahola was more than a forest of mass graves. It was a tragedy of manipulation, institutional failure and the exploitation of faith. In a special six-part series, the Nation goes beyond the horror to uncover the people, money, machinery and failures behind Kenya's deadliest cult tragedy.
'Even if he were to be hanged, I will never see my children again.' — Stephen Mwiti, who lost six children.
Mackenzie issued directives requiring followers to fast, while those who resisted faced physical abuse.
The judgment is not the end of the legal battles facing Mackenzie and his associates.
Dan Mackenzie describes the verdict as a relief for families who lost their loved ones.
Court judgment exposes wide network behind mass deaths in Shakahola Forest.
Kenya accounts for the largest number of documented African recruits by Russia.
The backlog includes nearly 400,000 cards that have remained uncollected for more than 10 years.
People bend the knee when America calls because it feeds them today. Stop, and see how quickly they quit picking your calls.
- forest
- chapter
- property
- money
- family
- shakahola
- process
- mobilisation
