The postmortem exercise on the 110 bodies exhumed in Shakahola forest is ongoing as 30 bodies were examined on Tuesday.
According to the government pathologist Dr. Johansen Oduor, the postmortem results of Four of the 30 bodies examined showed strangulation, smothering, and blunt object trauma.
Further, Dr. Oduor explained that the results of the rest, except for the six whose cause of death couldn’t be determined, died of starvation.
The exercise will continue alongside collecting DNA samples from members of 28 families of missing persons believed to have been members of Paul Mckenzie’s cult.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki who was overseeing the autopsy team on Monday said the exercise will be seeking, among other things, body organ harvesting.
The controversial Pastor Paul Mackenzie of the Good News International Church is accused of instructing members to starve themselves to “meet Jesus” which has now resulted in over 100 deaths of his followers.
Homicide detectives have since last week pitched a tent in the thickets of Shakahola forest searching for graves on the 800-acre piece of land belonging to Mackenzie.
Mackenzie was arrested on April 14 following a tip-off that suggested the existence of shallow graves containing the bodies of some of his followers.
The cult leader was again rearrested on Tuesday after Malindi Principal Magistrate Ivy Wasike said the matter could only be heard by a specialized court and hence closed his file which earned him the freedom that lasted a few minutes.
The Pastor and his co-accused are now at Shanzu Law Courts in Mombasa.
Meanwhile, Pastor Ezekiel Odero of the New Life Prayer Centre- who is being investigated for the alleged involvement in the Shakahola mass killings, was on Tuesday denied bail by the Shanzu Law Courts in Mombasa.
He will remain in police custody until Thursday when the court is expected to determine whether he should be granted bail.
According to media reports, Principal Magistrate Joe Amido granted the prosecution until May 4, 2023, to complete investigations.