As investigations into the breadth of the Paul Mackenzie-led cult operations proceed, the second part of the exhumation of the Shakahola remains is scheduled to begin on Tuesday.
The exhumations follow the autopsies of the more than 112 bodies that have been found so far.
As families of the missing continue to look for their loved ones and wait for the identification of the bodies that have been so far pulled from the forest, the exhumations will restart. Interior CS Kithure Kindiki reported that as of right now, a total of 112 remains have been excavated from graves connected to Mackenzie, who has since been detained, that were discovered in the forest.
While visiting Meru, Kindiki announced, “On Tuesday, I will formally begin the second phase of the exhumation since the experts are telling us that we still have more graves in the forest, which means that the number of bodies will increase.”
Officials have so far located 15 additional gravesites that they plan to focus on in the second exhumation phase. This indicates that there will likely be more bodies to recover.
The exhumations will restart as families of the missing continue to look for their loved ones and await the identification of the dead that have already been pulled from the forest as a result of cult connections to pastor Paul Mackenzie.
400 or more persons have been reported missing, according to Kenya Red Cross officials. To find out if their loved ones were among those who perished in Shakahola, the families are impatiently awaiting the results of the DNA matching.
For instance, Morris Yimbo’s four children never returned after leaving his Kisumu house in 2020 to travel to Kilifi with their uncle, a supporter of Mackenzie.
The family traveled to Lamu, Mombasa, and lastly Kilifi, Shakahola, the newest location of the Good News International church, under Mackenzie, in quest of relatives. After the cult news broke, Yimbo traveled to Malindi, where he claims his worst suspicions were confirmed.