World News | Kenya cult death toll hits 200, more than 600 reported missing

NAIROBI, May 13 (AP) — The death toll linked to a Kenyan doomsday cult reached 201 on Saturday after police exhumed 22 bodies, most of which showed signs of starvation, according to the Coast District Commissioner. .

The bodies are believed to be followers of pastor Paul Mackenzie in coastal Kenya. He is accused (to avoid repeating “believe”) of ordering the congregation to starve in order to meet Jesus.

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More than 600 people are still missing.

Mackenzie, who was arrested last month, remains in custody. Police plan to charge him with terrorism-related offences.

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Hundreds of bodies have been exhumed from dozens of mass graves on his 800-acre property in coastal Kilifi County.

MacKenzie insists he closed his church in 2019 and moved to farm on his property in the forest area.

Autopsies on more than 100 bodies last week showed victims died of starvation, suffocation, suffocation and blunt force injuries.

Local media have been reporting cases of missing internal organs, citing case investigators.

Mackenzie, his wife and 16 other suspects will appear in court at the end of the month.

Coast District Commissioner Rhoda Onyancha said Saturday that the total number of arrests was 26, of which 610 were reported missing by their families.

It is unclear how many survivors have been rescued so far from the search and rescue operation on Mackenzie’s sprawling property. Some of them were found too weak to walk.

In Kenya, which has a religious society, cults are widespread.

Police across the country have been questioning other religious leaders whose teachings are deemed misleading and violate basic human rights.

President William Ruto last week set up a commission of inquiry into how hundreds of people were lured to death off the coast and recommended action be taken against agencies that failed to act.

MacKenzie has been accused in the past of killing children in his church and the case is pending in court. After his followers moved to the forest area, nearby residents sounded the alarm. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)