A Kenyan court on Friday sentenced doomsday cult leader Paul Mackenzie to 200 years in prison for murdering 191 people, all but one of them children, the BBC reported.
Mackenzie and 28 others were found guilty on October 19 of instructing members to starve their children to death so they could “meet Jesus.” Justice Diana Mochache said he bore “primary criminal culpability” and called the killings “cold and calculated.”
He received 100 years for homicide and another 100 for offences related to starvation; the terms within each category run concurrently, but the two sets run consecutively. Prosecutors had sought the death penalty. The judge declined, saying it would remove any prospect of rehabilitation. Kenya has not carried out an execution since 1987. His co-accused received sentences of up to 160 years.
Mackenzie was arrested in 2023 after more than 400 bodies were found in shallow graves in Shakahola forest near the coast. He still faces separate manslaughter and terrorism charges, which he denies. Al Jazeera also covered the sentencing.
Sources: BBC News, Al Jazeera, CBC News
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