Kenya’s Ruto vows action as religious cult death toll continues to rise

Kenyan President William Ruto  on Monday vowed to crack down on “unacceptable” religious movements as police discovered more fatalities in a Christian cult that practiced starvation, bringing the toll to 58.

A major search is under way in a forest near the coastal town of Malindi where dozens of corpses were exhumed over the weekend, with authorities fearing more grisly discoveries could be made.

A full-scale investigation has been launched into the Good News International Church and its leader, named in court documents as Paul Mackenzie Nthenge, who preached that death by starvation delivered followers to God.

It is believed some of his devotees could still be hiding in the bush around Shakahola, which was raided by police earlier this month after a tip-off from a local non-profit.

Since then, a number of people have been rescued and dozens of bodies unearthed in mass graves dug in shallow pits.

The toll had stood earlier Monday at 51, A 325-hectare (800-acre) area of woodland has been declared a crime scene as teams clad in overalls search for more burial sites and possible cult survivors.