- This week, the court was informed that they will hear testimonies from five witnesses; a victim, a doctor, a child, and two police officers investigating the case.
- Out of the 90 witnesses lined up; about 12 are under the Witness Protection Agency.
Image: FILE
The Director of Public Prosecution has lined up at least 90 witnesses to testify against cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 94 others in the terrorism-related case at Shanzu Law Courts.
Mackenzie and the co-accused are facing 13 acts of terrorism charges for their involvement in the deaths of 448 people, whose bodies were exhumed from Shakahola forest.
Mackenzie and the co-accused are also facing murder, manslaughter and child cruelty charges at Malindi High Court, Mombasa Magistrate Court, and Tononaka Children’s Court respectively.
It is alleged that on various dates between 2020 and 2023, the accused persons, who were members of the Good News International (GNI) Ministries, an organized criminal group, engaged in organized criminal activities in the Kwa Mackenzie area of Shakahola Forest, endangering lives and killing over 448 members and followers.
Mackenzie has already spent more than 451 days behind bars since his arrest on April 15 last year.
His co-accused have also spent more than 400 days in custody.
From Monday, the Shanzu Magistrate Court began extensive hearings of the Shakahola massacre from key witnesses, among them victims, police officers and children.
This week, the court was informed that they will hear testimonies from five witnesses; a victim, a doctor, a child, and two police officers investigating the case.
However, on Monday and Tuesday, the media was barred from covering the first witness, after the Witness Protection Agency obtained a court order to protect the identity of the witness.
Out of the 90 witnesses lined up; about 12 are under the Witness Protection Agency.
“Out of the 12 protected witnesses, some 9 are children and three are adults. The first witness is however an adult, but is a victim of the Shakahola massacre,” an officer told The Star.
On Monday, the DPP told the Shanzu Magistrate Court that Mackenzie operated a “ruthless and efficient” well-organized criminal enterprise that massacred about 500 people at Shakahola forest.
Senior Assistant DPP Jami Yamina said the militia-like enterprise was not a fringe group, but rather a well-organized one under the guise of a church under Mackenzie’s leadership.
“To substantiate the prosecution's case, we will present both direct and circumstantial evidence, with around 90 prosecution witnesses, numerous pieces of real and documentary evidence, including electronic and other forms of digital evidence,” said Yamina.
The court heard that the gang carried out systematic massacres under an intricate governance system, complete with communication and transportation networks and security measures to enforce Mackenzie’s ruthless directives.
The first witness is said to have been a member of the Good News International Church and had also lived and stayed at Shakahola.
The witness is among hundreds of members of the Good News International (GNI) church members who were lured into buying land at Shakahola forest.
Mackenzie had made his followers believe that he owns part of the over 900-acre Shakahola forest, and was selling the land at between Sh3000 and Sh5,000 an acre to his members.
The second witness is a doctor, who rescued a child at Shakahola.
“The second witness will not testify as a doctor, but a person who rescued a child at Shakahola,” a member of the prosecution team said.
The prosecution team stated the witnesses would paint a vivid picture of the blood bath that occurred within the secluded expansive Shakahola forest.
The DPP is also pushing the court to allow them to conduct a site visit to the crime scene deep into Shakahola Forest to reconstruct the crime scene through the crime scene reports.
Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Peter Kiprop, said the evidence will reveal how the actions of the accused stem from the same series of events and transactions as other offences they are facing in different courts based on jurisdiction.
At Shanzu Court, the prosecution said it would present evidence to illustrate that the accused did not function merely as a fringe group, but rather as a well-organized criminal enterprise operating under the guise of a church under the leadership of Mackenzie.
“The evidence will reveal a hierarchical structure, with the Mackenzie and Smart Mwakalama as accused individuals positioned at the helm, overseeing operations,” said Kiprop.
He said the witnesses, some of whom are vulnerable and under protection, will recount the accused's firm control over the group's activities.
They will describe an intricate governance system, complete with communication and transportation networks, security measures, and an armed militia tasked with enforcing the directives of the Mackenzie with ruthless efficiency, he said.
In the terrorism-related charge, the evidence presented by the prosecution will seek to illustrate the presence of an extremist ideology promoted by the accused.
The witness testimonies will seek to reveal their acceptance of the fate advocated for and embraced as a transcendent state of blissful and heroic transition to spiritual realms, albeit through actions classified as either murder or manslaughter.
“Therefore, based on the evidence presented and the testimonies that the prosecution intends to adduce, it is clear that the accused must be held responsible for their actions,” said Kiprop.