Kenyan police rescue 57 and find 2 dead in suspected cult case, echoing 2023 Shakahola tragedy.

Kenyan police have discovered two bodies and rescued 57 individuals at a church located in the western part of the country, according to an internal police report. The incident bears striking similarities to the mass starvation of hundreds of followers in a notorious doomsday cult in Kenya two years ago.

The bodies were recovered from the premises of the St. Joseph Missions of Africa Church in Migori County on Monday, according to a police report reviewed by Reuters. One of the bodies, identified as a male, was found “lying on the floor of a prayer room within the church compound,” and was “fully covered in a white robe and wrapped in a grey sheet,” the report stated.

The 57 rescued individuals appeared to be weak and malnourished. Although they were transported to a nearby hospital for treatment, they reportedly refused medical attention and instead “began to make noises and [sing] religious songs,” the report noted.

A police spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

In 2023, more than 400 bodies were exhumed from the Shakahola forest in eastern Kenya, nearly half of them children, following the discovery of one of the worst cult-related tragedies in recent memory.

According to Reuters, prosecutors have charged Paul Mackenzie, leader of the Good News International Church, along with several of his associates, with murder, terrorism-related offenses, manslaughter, and torture. He is accused of directing his followers to starve themselves and their children to death in the belief that doing so would allow them to ascend to heaven before the end of the world.

Mackenzie has denied all charges, and the legal proceedings remain ongoing.