Kenya halts exhumations after 100+ bodies found at cult site

In Kenya, gruesome exhumations at Chakama Ranch in Kilifi County have been suspended to allow for DNA analysis after more than 100 body parts and 34 new bodies were uncovered in the latest phase of investigation into a suspected doomsday cult.

The site lies just two kilometers from where over 400 bodies were discovered two years ago, linked to controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie, who remains in custody on murder charges.

Police say this second round of exhumations coincides with the regrouping of former cult members. A multi-agency team is investigating what led to these new deaths, including recent arrests of 11 suspects, held after a woman reported the deaths of her children.

Government pathologists are now preparing to conduct autopsies, starting with X-rays, as the probe deepens.

Authorities are also analyzing money transfers to the suspects’ phones, suspecting that cult operations were still being quietly funded.

Police say the cult members had rented homes in Malindi before relocating to the remote, forested Chakama Ranch, where shallow graves were again found next to mud huts.

Police Chief Douglas Kanja admitted the vast, isolated terrain has made surveillance difficult, but vowed that coordinated efforts would continue until justice is served.