The key facts
- Paul Mackenzie was sentenced to 200 years in prison on 191 counts of murder
- In October, he was found guilty of the death of one adult and 190 children
- Around 400 people died in total in the 'Shakahola forest massacre'
The verdict in the 'Shakahola forest massacre' case
Paul Mackenzie, the leader of a Kenyan religious cult, was sentenced on Friday to 200 years in prison. This was the outcome of a trial that began after hundreds of bodies were discovered in a forest. Deutsche Welle reports Deutsche Welle.
Who is Mackenzie and what was he found guilty of
Mackenzie is a self-proclaimed pastor and longtime head of the apocalyptic new-age Christian church Good News International Church, which operated from 2003. In October, the court found him guilty on 191 counts of murder: one adult and 190 children died. The charges concerned 191 deaths, but in total, around 400 people were found dead in the so-called 'Shakahola forest massacre'.
Why not the death penalty
The maximum punishment for Mackenzie could formally have been the death penalty — it still exists in Kenyan law. However, the country, like a number of other states that have retained this type of punishment in law but stopped carrying it out, has not executed sentences since 1987. The outlet notes that the article continues to be updated.
