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Oduor said the multi-stakeholder team involved in the exercise will meet next week to agree on the way forward.
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He revealed a possibility of some bodies exhumed from Shakahola being buried in a mass grave.
Image: FILE
The next phase of exhumation of bodies in the vast Shakahola forest will resume in March.
Government pathologist Johansen Oduor on Thursday said so far autopsies on 429 bodies had been done and results for DNA are still being awaited.
He said the plan is to ensure that nobody is left in the forest and to bring closure to families looking for their loved ones.
Oduor said identified bodies exhumed from the Shakahola forest from the last phase of the exercise will be released to their families in March.
He was speaking at the ongoing Kemri Annual Scientific and Health Conference in Nairobi on Thursday.
Oduor said the last phase of the exercise which will resume in March will include the recovery of more bodies
"We are resuming the exercise in March, in which we will receive the results of DNA tests, release identified bodies to relatives and embark on the last phase of the exercise,” Oduor said.
“This will include recovery, identifying, postmortem examination, evidence collection and documentation."
Oduor said the multi-stakeholder team involved in the exercise will meet next week to agree on the way forward.
He revealed a possibility of some bodies exhumed from Shakahola being buried in a mass grave.
This is because some relatives have refused to undertake a DNA test to match the bodies with their respective families.
According to the pathologist, some of the relatives didn’t want to be associated with their kin who had willingly joined Paul Mackenzie’s church.
“Some of them came and gave their samples but some of them refused because they were telling us the person went to Mackenzie hence they don’t want anything to do with them," he said.
In January, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki declared Good News International Ministries under Paul Mackenzie as a criminal organized group.
The declaration was made through a gazette notice.
"In exercise of the powers conferred by section 22 (1) of the Prevention of Organized Crimes Act, the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration declares Good News International Ministries to be an organized criminal group for the purpose of the Act,” reads the notice.
CS Kindiki had earlier vowed to ensure everyone responsible for the Shakahola massacre is brought to book.
Mackenzie and his followers are accused of ordering their followers to starve to death in Shakahola Forest so they could "go to heaven".