Paul Mackenzie’s son recounts week-long fast, three-hour beating at age 12

Paul Mackenzie’s son recounts week-long fast, three-hour beating at age 12

Speaking after the court ruling, Dan Mackenzie said he felt relieved by the convictions and believed justice had been served for the victims and their families.

Paul Mackenzie’s son has described how he was forced to fast for a week and beaten by members of his father’s church as a child, saying he eventually left school and began working as a motorbike rider in Malindi at the age of 12.

Dan Mackenzie, now 24, shared the account after the High Court in Mombasa convicted his father and 28 co-accused over the murders of 191 people in the Shakahola tragedy.

Dan said he was subjected to harsh treatment while growing up within the religious movement led by his father, recalling an incident in which he was beaten for resisting the church’s demands.

“I was forced when I was young, when I was 12, to fast for a whole week,” he told journalists.

He also alleged that members of the church beat him for nearly three hours when he resisted attending a church service. He said he was stripped naked during the incident.

Paul Mackenzie at Shakahola Law Courts in Mombasa County on March 13, 2024. (Photo: Farhiya Hussein)

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He said his relationship with Mackenzie eventually broke down, with the preacher telling him he was on his own.

After leaving school in Class Seven, Dan turned to the bodaboda business in Malindi to earn a living. His account points to the difficulties he says he faced growing up in the religious group, where he alleges he was subjected to practices he did not agree with.

Speaking after the court ruling, Dan said he felt relieved by the convictions and believed justice had been served for the victims and their families.

He also disclosed that he had spoken to his father, who accused him of betrayal. Dan said he did not understand the reason for the accusation and had nothing further to say to him.

Dan described himself as a victim of the religious movement, adding a personal account of life within Mackenzie’s circle to a case that has drawn national and international attention.

He also revealed that his five younger siblings, three sisters and two brothers, had been rescued and were living at a rescue centre. He expressed hope that they would be able to rebuild their lives.

Search team members collect a body found in a grave in the Shakahola Forest in Kilifi County on June 3, 2024. (Photo: Farhiya Hussein/EV)

The convictions followed a lengthy investigation into the deaths linked to Mackenzie’s Good News International Church. Hundreds of bodies were recovered from Shakahola Forest in Kilifi County, where followers were allegedly encouraged to fast in the belief that doing so would bring them closer to God.

The discoveries triggered a major police operation and forensic investigations as families sought answers about relatives who had joined the preacher’s movement.

The court’s decision has brought renewed attention to the people affected by the group, including children and family members whose experiences have largely remained outside the courtroom proceedings.

Mackenzie and the 28 co-accused are scheduled to be sentenced on November 6, 2026.