Death toll at Kenya starvation cult rises

• The death toll rises at the Kenya cult.
• Pastor Paul Makenzi is accused of convincing followers to starve themselves.
• So far 90 bodies have been discovered on his property.

Death toll rises at Kenya cult. Since the initial chilling discovery, authorities have uncovered even more bodies. The situation has caused outrage and panic around the world. The number of dead found at pastor Paul Makenzi’s property has risen to 90.

According to The Associated Press, the death toll at a Kenyan coastal farm owned by a pastor who has been accused of ordering followers to fast to death rose to 90 on Tuesday, as interior ministry announced an expansion of the operation at the site.

Death toll at Kenya cult rises

The new number was given after the police exhumed another 17 bodies. The number of those rescued from starving at the property now stands at 34. The Kenya Red Cross Society said the updated number of missing people stands at 213.

Pastor Paul Makenzi, leader of the Good News International Church, is accused of luring his followers to the farm near the town of Malindi. He allegedly ordered them to fast to death so they could meet Jesus, before burying them in shallow graves on his land.

Paul Makenzi was arrested after police raided his property a few days ago

Makenzi was arrested after the police raided his property a few days ago, and remains in custody. Home Minister Kithure Kindiki said the security team «will expand search and rescue missions in order to save as many lives as possible.»

“The entire 800-acre (320-hectare) area that is part of the Shakahola Ranch is therefore declared a disaster zone and operational zone,” Kindiki said as he toured the site. He added that there will be changes in the way the country deals with threats caused by religious extremism and that authorities are investigating another possible cult in the same county, Kilifi.

Most of those rescued could not walk or talk

“We have cast a wider net to encompass another religious organization here in Kilifi. We have opened a formal investigation into this religious group and have been receiving leads that what Makenzi was doing was possibly just the tip of the iceberg,” Kindiki said.

Crews at the ranch have been finding bodies, some buried in mass graves, others in individual graves marked with a cross. Many hacienda residents, who lived in mud huts, have fled from investigators. Most of those rescued could not walk or talk.

There are still more shallow graves to be excavated on Paul Makenzi’s property

Muslims for Human Rights, a Mombasa-based group, called on the government to «consider the option of using helicopter aerial surveillance to rescue more people and expedite the process.»

There are still more shallow graves to excavated on Paul Makenzi’s property. He was arrested on April 14 for links to sectarian practices, according to Malindi sub-county police chief John Kemboi and The Associated Press.