The Mombasa High Court is set to deliver sentences against Pastor Paul Mackenzie, 28 co-accused persons in the case involving the deaths of 190 children and one adult in Shakahola.
Pastor Paul Mackenzie and his co-accused arrived for their sentencing Friday morning after the Director pf Public Prosecution successfully proved 191 counts of murder against all.
DPP urged the High Court in Mombasa to impose the death sentence on the controversial preacher for his role in the murder of 191 people in the Shakahola tragedy, 190 of them children.
Making submissions on sentencing today, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Jami Yamina told the court that the death penalty was the most appropriate punishment for Mackenzie, considering the gravity and heinous nature of the offences.
“The prosecution supports the imposition of capital punishment for Mackenzie, subject to consideration of his mitigation, remorse, regret and prospects of rehabilitation,” Yamina submitted.
He cited Section 204 of the Penal Code and the Supreme Court’s Muruatetu jurisprudence, arguing that the circumstances of the case warranted the death sentence given the scale of the loss of life and the threat posed to society.
Mackenzie and 28 others were convicted of 191 counts of murder arising from the deaths of 191 people at Shakahola Forest in Malindi Sub-County, Kilifi County, between January 2021 and September 2023.
more to follow…
