The High Court in Mombasa delivered the verdict on October 19, finding that Mackenzie and his co-accused were responsible for deaths linked to an organised fasting regime at Shakahola Forest in Kilifi County.

Justice Diana Kavedza said the prosecution had proved the murder charges against all 29 defendants beyond reasonable doubt, rejecting the defence argument that the victims had voluntarily fasted to death.

“I reject the defence of the accused persons that the victims who were all below the age of 16s voluntarily fasted to death,” the judge said.

The accused were convicted on 191 counts of murder involving 190 children and one adult. They are due to be sentenced on November 6, with a mitigation hearing scheduled for October 30.

Mackenzie, who led the Good News International Church, was accused of directing followers to starve themselves and their children in the belief that they would enter heaven before the end of the world.

The court found that religious teachings and an established hierarchy were used to enforce fasting, with children targeted first and followers prevented from escaping or accessing food.

The case emerged in 2023 after police investigated reports of missing people in Shakahola Forest. Authorities subsequently uncovered more than 400 bodies in shallow graves across the area.

Although the latest convictions concern 191 murder counts, the wider Shakahola investigation involves hundreds of deaths. Mackenzie and some co-accused also face separate proceedings connected to other alleged offences.

Kenya’s Director of Public Prosecutions, Renson Ingonga, welcomed the verdict, praising the prosecution team for securing the convictions.

“The best judgment we would ever get,” Ingonga said, describing the outcome as a significant moment for the prosecution.

The ruling has brought some relief to families who lost relatives in the tragedy. Francis Wanje, who lost eight family members, including two grandchildren, told Reuters that the verdict gave him confidence in the judiciary.

The Shakahola case has intensified calls for closer oversight of religious organisations in Kenya, where the tragedy raised questions about how Mackenzie’s activities continued despite earlier encounters with authorities.

Mackenzie denied forcing his followers to starve. His lawyer, Lawrence Obonyo, said that the defence planned to appeal the convictions.

The November 6 sentencing will determine the punishment for Mackenzie and his 28 co-accused, while other proceedings connected to the wider tragedy continue.