Current:Home > FinanceKenya doomsday cult leader found guilty of illegal filming, but yet to be charged over mass deaths-LoTradeCoin
Kenya doomsday cult leader found guilty of illegal filming, but yet to be charged over mass deaths
View Date:2024-12-23 19:23:46
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Paul Mackenzie, the Kenyan preacher at the center of a doomsday cult in the country that led to the deaths of more than 400 people, was on Friday found guilty of operating a studio and distributing films without a license.
The senior resident magistrate in the town of Malindi, Olga Onalo, found Mackenzie guilty of exhibition of films through his Times Television without approval of the Kenya Film Classification Board.
The preacher has been in police custody for more than six months now since he was arrested in April, following the discovery of hundreds of bodies in mass graves in a forested area across his 800-acre property in the coastal county of Kilifi.
Prosecutors say Mackenzie ordered his congregants to starve to death in order to meet Jesus.
However, he has not been formally charged over the deaths, despite being arraigned in court on numerous occasions since his arrest.
On Friday he was acquitted of additional charges of influencing children to not attend school and using radical preaching to incite Christians against Hindus, Buddhists and Muslims.
He will be sentenced for the film-related offenses on Dec. 1 and could face up to five years in prison.
On Thursday, prosecutors applied to have Mackenzie held in custody for six more months to allow police to complete their investigations which include the search for dozens of people still missing.
Since his arrest, there have been growing calls for the government to regulate churches in Kenya.
veryGood! (3827)
Related
- South Carolina does not set a date for the next execution after requests for a holiday pause
- Vivek Ramaswamy reaches donor threshold for first Republican presidential primary debate
- Kelsea Ballerini Speaks Out After Onstage Incident to Address Critics Calling Her Soft
- In historic move, Biden nominates Adm. Lisa Franchetti as first woman to lead Navy
- Harriet Tubman posthumously honored as general in Veterans Day ceremony: 'Long overdue'
- Rural Pennsylvanians Set to Vote for GOP Candidates Who Support the Natural Gas Industry
- Is a State Program to Foster Sustainable Farming Leaving Out Small-Scale Growers and Farmers of Color?
- Earth Has a 50-50 Chance of Hitting a Grim Global Warming Milestone in the Next Five Years
- Sister Wives’ Kody Brown Explains His Stance on His Daughter Gwendlyn Brown’s Sexuality
- Illinois Solar Companies Say They Are ‘Held Hostage’ by Statehouse Gridlock
Ranking
- Sister Wives' Janelle Brown Details to Meri Why She Can't Trust Ex Kody and His Sole Wife Robyn
- NPR quits Twitter after being falsely labeled as 'state-affiliated media'
- Inside Clean Energy: Here’s Why Some Utilities Support, and Others Are Wary of, the Federal Clean Energy Proposal
- Euphora Star Sydney Sweeney Says This Moisturizer “Is Like Putting a Cloud on Your Face”
- 2 more escaped monkeys recaptured and enjoying peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in South Carolina
- Montana becomes 1st state to approve a full ban of TikTok
- Lime Crime Temporary Hair Dye & Makeup Can Make It Your Hottest Summer Yet
- Christy Carlson Romano Reacts to Chrissy Teigen and John Legend’s Even Stevens-Approved Baby Name
Recommendation
-
Powell says Fed will likely cut rates cautiously given persistent inflation pressures
-
Apple Flash Deal: Save $375 on a MacBook Pro Laptop Bundle
-
Human remains found in luggage in separate Texas, Florida incidents
-
The job market is cooling as higher interest rates and a slowing economy take a toll
-
Britney Spears reunites with son Jayden, 18, after kids moved in with dad Kevin Federline
-
Biden bets big on bringing factories back to America, building on some Trump ideas
-
Blake Lively Gives a Nod to Baby No. 4 While Announcing New Business Venture
-
Your banking questions, answered