A Mombasa court has ordered that suspected cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 17 other suspects in the Shakahola deaths be held in custody for another 30 days.
The judgment to imprison Mackenzie, his wife Rhoda Maweu, and 16 other suspects were given by Shanzu Principal Magistrate Yusuf Shikanda, who cited ongoing investigations.
Detectives want Mackenzie and other alleged accomplices to give them room to follow other leads in the case, according to an affidavit sworn by the Investigating Officer, Inspector Raphael Wanjohi.
The suspects will be kept in various Coast police stations until the investigations are completed.
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During the court proceedings, Mackenzie's legal team expressed worries about their clients' inhumane conditions, notably the issue of sleeping on the bare floor, which might lead to health complications.
The lawyers, led by George Kariuki, Wycliffe Makasembo, and Elisha Komora, raised their concerns, noting that the health of their clients was jeopardized due to the conditions they were subjected to.
"My clients have been sleeping on bare cement floors; their lungs are already wet, and they have complained of rib pain." "Chances are they have already contracted pneumonia and will die before the matter is heard," Kariuki said.
Furthermore, given the claims of starving their victims to death, the defence claimed that the suspects were put to food deprivation as punishment.
The defence team also asked the court to order the police to account for Sh150,000 taken from Mackenzie's wife during her detention but inexplicably vanished.
However, senior principal prosecution counsel Yamina Jamii responded to Mackenzie's motion by claiming the suspects were housed in better conditions than the over 100 cult victims.
President William Ruto has since created an investigative commission to investigate the killings, which have already surpassed 100.
The commission of inquiry's mandate will be to investigate the deaths, torture, and inhumane and degrading treatment of members and other people associated with the Good News International Church in Kilifi County, to determine the situations surrounding these incidents, and to identify the people most responsible for the Shakahola tragedy.
The panel will also suggest specific actions that should be done against them, such as warnings, regulatory actions, reparations, or criminal inquiry recommendations.
