Homicide detectives on Friday exhumed 29 bodies in Shakahola forest, the highest number in a day, taking the death toll to 179.
The 179 – part of 609 people said to be missing – are believed to have starved themselves to death to “meet God” following the teachings of Good New International Church leader Paul Mackenzie.
The dead were buried in the expansive 800-acre farm in the forest, almost 70 kilometres from Malindi.
Others, postmortem examinations have shown, were strangled or beaten.
The second phase of the exhumations supervised by homicide chief, Martin Nyuguto, began this week.
A medical team under Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor has examined 112 bodies. The exhumation had been halted due to downpours in Kilifi County.
Detectives are also focusing Mr Mackenzie’s homestead after getting reports of a mass grave in the area.
“The number of those rescued remains 72 while arrests are 65. Some 93 families have provided DNA samples. The number of those reported missing rose by 15, totalling to 609,” Coast Regional Commissioner Rhoda Onyancha said.
Mackenzie, who is in custody, is being investigated for influencing his followers to starve to death. Police say some victims may have been killed and buried on the expansive property.
Bodies exhumed from mass graves in Shakahola forest, Kilifi County on May 12, 2023.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group
Meanwhile, there has been confusion at the Kenya Red Cross Society tracing desk as families fail to identify their kin.
Many of Mr Mackenzie’s followers, it has emerged, changed their names and those rescued are being held at unnamed government institutions.
The tracing desk at Malindi Sub County Hospital is busy as the number of families arriving to report their missing relatives increases.
As the starving and sick people recover, they are sent to places unknown to their families.
Ms Fatuma Salim, who had reported her sister Shamim as missing, identified her after weeks of searching. Her joy, however, was shortlived.
“I had registered her as Shamim Salim but there was no such name among those rescued. Weeks later, I showed the officers my sister’s photo. She had been rescued but gave her name as Damaris Vidzo,” she said.
“Asked if she knew me, she answered in the affirmative. She was then taken to hospital.”
“While at hospital, a CT scan revealed that she had been pregnant but had a miscarriage as she and the baby were starving. I remained by her hospital bed for days,” she said.
Ms Salim, who works at construction sites, took care of her sister for a week. The sister was too weak even to walk to the toilet on her own.
“I was happy as she slowly recovered. We could now take her home,” she said.
“Where is she? I am still waiting,” she said, adding that the siblings were very close until the demise of their parents some years ago. Some even ended up at children’s homes.
Bodies exhumed from mass graves in Shakahola forest, Kilifi County are loaded into a vehicle during the operation on May 12, 2023.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group
Ms Onyancha said once people are rescued from the forest, they are taken to hospital for treatment and psycho-social support.
Families of rescued people are demanding to be told where they are being held and why they are not allowed to visit them.
“The victims who were taken home by their families have been returned to rescue centres,” a government official told the Saturday Nation.
Coast Region Red Cross chief, Hamisi Musa, admitted that identification and reuniting the victims with their families are slow. He added that most of those found in the forest have no identity documents.
Ms Ruth Kahindi does not know the whereabouts of her daughter, six grandchildren and two great grandchildren.
Ms Kahindi’s daughter, Mary Smart, a follower of Mr Mackenzie, vanished several months ago.
“We are not allowed to see the exhumed bodies and there are no updates,” she said.
Mr Abbas Babatunde is looking for his wife, daughter, parents-in law and brother-in-law.
“With a relative of my in-laws, we found out that my family members were not among those rescued,” said Mr Babatunde, who has gone back to Mombasa to wait for the DNA results.
