Anastasia Mwele, the mother to controversial pastor Paul Mackenzie, on Friday, April 28, defended her son, arguing that he was not a killer.
Speaking to the press, the embattled mother noted that her son stopped preaching in 2019 when he closed down his church, concurring with Mackenzie, who made similar claims after his arrest.
The distraught mother argued that the authorities were out to frame his son and were pinning the retrieved bodies on his teachings, using him as a scapegoat.
"I am his mother, has he tried to kill me? My son is innocent and what they are doing to him is unfair," she stated.
"I have never seen my son with any issue, they are trying to frame him and arrest him," she added.
She questioned how anyone would be convinced to fast to death in the name of meeting Jesus.
On the other hand, his brother argued that some of the bodies retrieved from the Shakahola forest may have been buried a long time ago and were not linked to the pastor. Autopsies, he added, may reveal the truth behind the incident.
However, the family affirmed that Mackenzie was a friend of Pastor Ezekiel Odero, also linked to multiple deaths at his church.
They noted that the duo engaged when Mackezie sold his TV station (Times TV) to Ezekiel in 2019. According to police reports, Mackenzie sold the station for Ksh500,000. However, police traced Ksh3 million transactions between the two, days after Ezekiel was arrested.
"I have seen pastor Ezekiel once when he came to buy the TV station from my brother," the brother explained.
The Communications Authority (CA) suspended Times TV, on Friday, April 28, alongside World Evangelism TV, for violating broadcasting standards.
In relation to the exhumation process at Shakahola forest, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki suspended the exercise owing to the heavy rainfall in the area.
He also transferred police commanders and officers in the area after at least 109 bodies were exhumed, believed to have died after being advised to fast to death.
On the other hand, pastor Ezekiel was detained by police officers and accused of genocide, terrorism, radicalisation, and other charges related to the mass killing of his followers.
"There is credible information linking the bodies exhumed from the 800-acre piece of land situated in Shakahola, associated with Paul Makenzi and his accomplices, with several innocent and vulnerable followers of Ezekiel's ministry," read part of the court documents.
