Controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie and 38 of his co-accused in the Shakahola massacre are set to be charged afresh in the ongoing children cruelty and torture case after the prosecution unearthed new evidence.
According to a statement issued by the Office of Director of Public Prosecution on Friday, the 39 suspects will now be arraigned before Tononoka Children’s Court Principal Magistrate Nelly Chepchirchir next month following the evidence which links them to 17 counts of torture and cruelty against children.
The new evidence includes witness statements, video and audio exhibits, and forensic and expert reports among others.
DPP says that the case was supposed to be heard on Friday but was pushed due to Mackenzie’s lawyer Wycliffe Makasembo’s absence. The Magistrate thus directed for the defence lawyer to be informed of the next hearing.
“Chepchirchir directed the prosecution to inform him through his last known address of the next mentioned date and production order of all the accused persons,” stated the DPP.
“The court intends to fix a hearing date on 4th June 2024 in the presence of the defence counsel and his clients, who were denied bond for being a flight risk.”
During the hearing on Thursday, the court had also dispensed with the accused persons’ attendance but allowed them to join virtually from Shimo La Tewa Maximum Security Prison.
Magistrate Chepchirchir indicated that she will expedite the hearing of the case to ensure all parties are accorded justice.
The development comes after the court last week ordered Mackenzie to be served with witness statements and exhibits in the case.
Mackenzie and his 38 co-accused, who are parents of children victims rescued from the Shakahola forest, were charged with 17 counts of offences under the Children Act 2012, the Prevention of Torture Act 2017, and the Basic Education Act 2013.
These charges include two counts of subjecting a child to torture with an alternative count of assault causing actual bodily harm, nine charges of cruelty to a child, and six counts of infringing a child’s right to education.
They all denied all the charges levelled against them.
The case will be mentioned on June 4, 2024.
