The horror tale of Mackenzie’s killer gangs and the journey to ‘heaven’

Erick Ludeya

Paul Mackenzie will go in record books as one of the world’s most dangerous cult leader who brainwashed and used religion to kill hundreds, if not thousands of unsuspecting and gullible followers.

These gullible followers nicknamed him ‘papa’ and they took every word from him as gospel truth -more than Jesus Christ himself was believed. He prophesized doom in the name of heaven and the heaven itself is a forest of mass graves.

The Times has been able to get to the detailed operations of the rogue pastor and how he was able to lead a cult group without the authorities sensing any danger. One of his rebel followers named Titus Mweri Katana who served as his assistant in 2015 reveals that Mackenzie had killer gangs named after key towns in Israel.There is Jerusalem,Nazareth and then Judea.

The gangs were divided into two more functional units; one for burials and the other one for surveillance and guarding against any escape. The gang has to protect those who have ‘believed’ and are starving to death deep inside the Shakahola Forest. Those who try to escape are dealt with accordingly.

Titus reveals that he is himself on Mackenzie’s wanted list but he is not scared because he knows all about the cult’s evil operations.

“He says that after he is done with the court case he will come for me.He is a murderer,” Titus says.

Titus fears that Mackenzie may have buried more than 2000 bodies because according to him, the killings started during the Covid-19 pandemic in March, 2020.

He had deep rooted networks in neighboring Tanzania where he ferried some of his followers whose families were ‘stubborn’ and increasingly discerning to find out what was going on.

“Mackenzie had a plan and still he has a plan over his preaching and radicalization just incase he wins this case,”

Titus adds that the first deaths that were reported at Shakahola can’t be traced because Mackenzie exhumed the bodies. He categorically says the bodies are of two children belonging to ex-GSU officer.

There was an escalation of more deaths this between January and March because he had told his followers the world as was going to end on April 15 and Satan would rule for 1,000 years, according to our further investigations.

A video posted on YouTube in March captures him saying: “I heard the voice of Christ telling me that the work I gave you to preach end-time messages for nine years has come to an end,”

It is weeks later where more than 100 bodies – mostly children – were exhumed in mass graves in the Shakahola forest.

Titus was Mackenzi’es assistant preacher at worldwide church in 2015 and the two parted ways when the church was closed following a court case that began in 2017 over his preaching.

“When Mackenzie closed his church in 2019 I joined Ostrich Gospel church,”

However, Mackenzie managed to convince Titus’ wife to follow him to Shakahola in 2021.

Titus would later give in to the emotional preasure of losing his wife and joined in to what was a fast-growing cult.

At this point,Mackenzie continued with his radicalization and he was getting more followers from upcountry and they would immediately have their names changed and their documents burned.

The relationship between Titus and Mackenzie was rekindled courtesy of his wife.Titus would even go ahead to buy one acre piece for his wife from Mackenzie.

In 2022 Titus says he bought another 10acres piece of land for sh40k only and this according to him was for his six children

But he left Shakahola at the beginning of 2022 following a ‘revelation’ from Mackenzie that God had told him there will be plenty of rains and that people should prepare to plant.

At this point, Mackenzie gave instructions that the children should start fasting while scorching in the sun. Isack Ngala who the Ex GSU officer mentioned earlier lost his two children at this time as revealed by Titus.

“I didn’t take it slow, I took an initiative of going to Shakahola, I went with A friend called Humprey and another one Wanje in February but what irritated me more Mackenzie had formed two groups; one group was a vigilante and the other was for burial purposes, we were assaulted, we met them at Judea though they were so weak, we gave them some food,”

At the Shakahola forest,it is at a place named Seadon by Mackenzie t where most of the graves are but he himself stayed at a place he named Galilee.

Through these revelations, we were able to find another relative to possible starvation victims named Zakayo Munyoki, who on April 6, 2021 lost his family members through his wife’s secret deal with pastor Mackenzie who had radicalized her. The 39-year old father of four sensed something was wrong and started tracing the wherebouts of his children only to later realize that they were being ferried to Tanzania.

His wife Jesca Ngina who was born in 1991 had faled into Mackenzies radical teachings of taking children out of school and burning all government documents

“I searched about Marko who is one of the children and found his details through his uncle, I called marcko on phone, and realized that that by 8am they arrived at Lunga-Lunga and that the children were already at a place called Mweza in Tanzania,” he says.

He arrived at Mweza at 6pm where he quickly worked on Marko’s documents but unfortunately all the other children no longer had their documents. He had found them so weak and in need of food.

“They were so weak and I quickly organized food for them before we travelled back to Kenya,” he adds.

The following weak, he took the children back to school much to the disgust of his radicalized wife who he would later take far away to Bura.

Zakayo further explains that he left her but went to bring her back after two days but he was shocked when the wife said that she could only return home on the condition that they will not take the children to school or hospital.

The two dialogued and the wife partially agreed to come back home. Shockingly, immediately she arrived,she went straight to Mackenzie’s church. Upon inquiring from Mackenzie himself, Zakayo was agonized by the pastor’s response that the wife was mature enough to make her own decisions.

Zakayo explains: “In September 8, 2021 the wife left. She sent a text saying ‘don’t look for me let us meet in heaven.’ In December I went to Shakahola to meet Mackenzie. I begged him to allow me talk to my wife for the last time. Mackenzie denied. While at Shakahola Mackenzie called ten guys among them one known as Smart who is the founder of the Good News Church. I was so annoyed and left,”

He says that it is in May 2022 when Mackenzie called him at around 9pm informing him about his wife who was no more.

Another grieving relative , Priscilla Riziki, 43, who is a mother of six in Majivuni Juja, says he lost his daughter called Laureen to the cult. Priscilla herself says that she knew about Mackenzie through a neighbor before joining his church which she quit in 2017.

Priscilla’s daughter however grew and got married at Mackenzie’s church and she was last seen in March, 2023.Sshe is now 25yrs.

The husband to Laureen is called Peter Menza and one of their children was among the bodies exhumed according to a witness called Humprey.

Another of their relative Michael Mweri,his wife and two kids have been to Shakahola and they have since gone missing.

According to Naomi Kahindi,45, and a mother of 4, who has lived at Kisumu Ndogo Malindi where the controversy televangelist started preaching, they started parting ways when he started telling his followers to desist from getting treatment, getting any help from the government including the Huduma Number.

Naomi’s sister Mary was married to Smart the founder of the Good News Church whose followers followed Mackenzie to form the Shakahola cult.

Naomi says that Mackenzie started preaching about end time while at Kisumu Ndogo and he got many followers between 2016 and 2021 when he preached against the government’s Huduma Number program. The Covid-19 calamity gave him more and more followers who believed the scourge was a sign of the end times being preached by Mackenzie.

Naomi too fears that a lot of people may have perished and wants the government to go beyond Shakahola in their search for victims.

We are also in possession of agonizing text messages between relatives of a starvation victim who bid bye to family because heaven was coming so soon.Elizabeth Syombua a 30 –year old mother of three says she has a text messages from a brother who is at Shakahola.

“ Dadagu Mpendwa nakusalimu kwa jina la YESU KRISTO.Dada hope fine,me too but shetani ananimezea mate animeze but ng’o hata damu yangu hataioja.dada asante sana kwa kazi yako njema.Dada aki umejitolea kunisaidia kubeba msalaba,dada asante sana utalipwa na yesu hivi karibuni.Dada safari yangu ya imani iko hivi sasa,sahi niko Golgodha nangoja kujisulubisha kama watakatifu wenzangu.Dada punde si punde sitakusumbua tena coz roho ananishuhudia kwamba kiwango nimefikia sahi cha imani naweza potelea,” a text message in our possession reads.

The text message above loosely translates to : “ My dear sister I am greeting you in the name of Jesus Christ.Satan wants me but won’t get even a piece of my blood.My sister thank you for helping carry my cross you will be paid by Jesus.My sister,my journey of Faith is on now and I am now in Golgodha waiting to crucify myself like my fellow holy men.Soon, will not disturb you again because of where my faith has reached now I will disappear,”

The text message is dated April 12 which about the same time the mass graves were discovered

The starving brother wrote the message to Elizabeth to tell the situation at Shakahola and in a earlier separate text message,he reveals that his wife who he is calling Mama Gift and Gift the child are not in good condition.

“ Niko mdhaifi kabisa coz kupata chakula ni nadra kama wali wa daku.Pia mama Gift na Gift mwenywe hawajiskii poa na wamekusalimia.Dada naskumwa sana rohoni nikwambie mamabo mazito na magumu sana amabayo naambiwa na yesu kwa jozi na hayana budi kutimia karibuni lakini sina credo,” the text essage dated February 7 reads.

Elizabeth has since repowered the matter at the Central Police Station in Mombasa

A May 4 publication by International News outlet Reuters revealed that Mackenzie planned the mass starvation of cult members in three phases: first children, then women and young men, and finally the remaining men and he himself.

The death toll so far stands at over 200, with over 100 found in mass graves. Authorities warn the toll could rise further, with more than 400 people missing in the surrounding area.

Human Rights Activists; Victor Kaudo of Malindi Community Human Rights Centre says it has been difficult to establish the identity of the bodies because most of the victims had no documents and some were given new names.

While Mackenzie has preached against school, government documentation and eating, he himself went to Lukore Secondary School where he finished in 1992 and has never been on a starvation fast.

He is a father of five and all of his children are studying well in school. His first born is in form one.

He is the fifth born in a family of ten where his father Mackenzie Kisani toiled to bring them up.

In what contradicts what he has been preaching, Mackenzie, his wife Rhoda Mumbua Maweu and 16 other co-accused persons have accused police of denying them food while behind bars.

He is facing serious crimes of murder, counselling and aiding persons to kill themselves, aiding suicide, abduction, radicalization, genocide, crimes against humanity, child cruelty, fraud and money laundering, complained of mistreatment in the hands of police.

The Office of the Director of Criminal Investigation (ODPP) has also filed an application before the Shanzu Senior Principal Magistrate Yusuf Shikanda to continue holding Mackenzie and others for 90 days.