Daunting task of identifying bodies of Shakahola victims
The exhumation exercise in Shakahola forest on June 5, 2024.
What you need to know:
- The government has suspended the exhumations until Tuesday next week.
- The challenge of DNA profiling had also been witnessed in the initial stages.
The rising number of bodies exhumed from Shakahola Forest in Kilifi County have left the government on the horns of a dilemma amid revelations that the identification of recent victims could prove to be more challenging.
Human rights activists have urged the government to enlist the help of international experts in conducting DNA tests.
By Wednesday, the total number of bodies belonging to victims believed to have been followers of a doomsday cult linked to controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie reached 446 since the operation started last year.
This is after a total of 17 more bodies were recovered in the fifth phase that started on Monday.
The government has suspended the exhumations until Tuesday next week.
A confidential source within the multi-agency team that is involved in the investigations told the Nation the process of matching DNA samples might be more complicated this time round considering the advanced state of decomposition.
“Most of the remains recovered on Wednesday were skeletons, an indication that the bodies were buried more than two years ago,” said the source.
The challenge of DNA profiling had also been witnessed in the initial stages where only 32 out of 429 bodies were positively identified by March, leaving 397 unidentified.
As the bodies were being released periodically, some families who believed that their loved ones are among those who lost their lives were agitated after being informed that the DNA samples they provided did not match any of the over 400 bodies.
Among these families was that of Mr Titus Ngonyo, whose seven relatives are believed to have perished in Shakahola but only four were positively identified.
Another is that of Ms Alice Mwajuma Deche, who believes 12 of her relatives perished but, by March, only one had been identified.
“Losing 12 relatives is tough. We are, however, thankful that we found one of them," Ms Deche told the Nation at the Malindi Sub-county Hospital mortuary in March amid preparations for the burial of her daughter.
Mr Boniface Masha Karisa from Magarini, who believed his three children died in the forest, had only one identified by then.
Pili Masha (15), Sarah Masha (10) and Rukia Masha (18) were allegedly introduced into the cult by their mother, who is one of the suspects in custody at the Shimo la Tewa Prison.
Another victim, Ms Bella Ouma, and her daughter Lisa were positively identified through DNA sampling but one of Bella's daughters is still missing.
Haki Africa Rapid Response Officer Mathias Shipeta said it was futile to continue with the exhumation when bodies were still lying at the mortuary and DNA samples of victims’ families had been taken.
“The government ought to have requested assistance from advanced countries such as the US and South Africa to handle the DNA issue and reduce congestion at the Malindi mortuary,” he said.
His sentiments were echoed by Mr Victor Kaudo of Malindi Social Justice Centre, who claimed that families of the victims were suffering due to the slow pace of body identification.
On Tuesday, Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor said the government was overwhelmed by the number bodies with the makeshift morgue at the Malindi Sub-county Hospital filling up at a fast rate.
“Out of the 429 bodies exhumed in the previous four phases, 32 have been released for burial while others are yet to be claimed. We are asking more people to come out for DNA matching since the government has acquired adequate reagents to speed up the identification exercise,” he said.
The government has hinted at having a mass burial inside the forest for bodies which will remain unclaimed at the end of the operation.
The 4,000-acre forest remains out of bounds and under tight security as it is still a crime scene.
General Service Unit officers have pitched camps with regular patrols conducted to keep off anyone from entering the forest that is within the vast Chakama ranch.
Reporting by Nehemiah Okwembah, Anthony Kitimo and Valentine Obara
