The death toll from the Shakahola cult massacre has risen to 403 after 12 more bodies were exhumed by the DCI homicide detectives.
The bodies were exhumed from five graves, at an area presumed to be the ‘church’ where the followers of pastor Paul Mackenzie used to pray and hold meetings during weekends.
Few metres from where the bodies were retrieved, the detectives also stumbled on a scene where children reportedly used to be tied with ropes and starved to death inside the forest.
Coast Regional Commissioner Rhoda Onyancha says so far, 37 more suspects have been rescued with 258 DNA samples having been analyzed.
Police are in the fourth phase of exhumation in the ongoing probe into a cult whose members are said to have starved themselves in order to meet Jesus.
Followers of preacher Paul Mackenzie were buried in deep the forest located in Chakama Ranch after starving themselves to death in line with Mackenzie teachings.
The number of bodies is expected to rise as detectives perform more exhumations in coming days.
”Most detectives will tell you they have seen it all. It’s the nature of the job to be exposed to virtually everything Kenya has to offer, from the weird to the hilarious to the disturbing. But Shakahola is a different kind of evil.” One detective said.
The homicide detectives say the exhumation will take much longer than anticipated because new graves are being discovered every day.
