Carolyne Odour has told the BBC she desperately fears for the fate of her two young sons who went missing two months ago with their father - a follower of the teachings of a notorious starvation cult leader. Ms Odour says that amid an ongoing investigation into more deaths linked to the cult she has identified her husband's body at a mortuary in the coastal town of Malindi.
His corpse was found in July in the village of Kwa Binzaro, inland from Malindi and near the remote Shakahola Forest, where more than 400 bodies were found in 2023 in one of the worst ever cases of cult-related mass deaths. Ms Odour is now awaiting the results of DNA tests being carried out on more than 30 recently unearthed bodies.
I felt pain. I barely recognised him. His body was badly decomposing, Ms Odour, 40, said about her husband Samuel Owino Owoyo. She believes her sons, 12-year-old Daniel and nine-year-old Elijah, travelled with their 45-year-old father to Kwa Binzaro at the end of June.
Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Mackenzie is currently on trial over the so-called Shakahola Forest Massacre - and has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter. He is alleged to have told his followers they would get to heaven more quickly if they stopped eating - and there have been concerns he has been in touch with his followers from jail.
Ms Odour says her husband started listening to the teachings of Mr Mackenzie four or five years ago. He changed and he didn't want the kids to go to school, she said. When the kids would fall ill he'd say that God would heal them. He really believed those teachings.
On June 28, Ms Odour's husband left home with their two youngest sons. She got suspicious when he did not contact her again and later discovered he had not gone to his parents' village but had travelled east to Kwa Binzaro.
Retracing his steps, she discovered that he had taken a bus from their home in Busia county to Kwa Binzaro. After a few weeks, she received a call about her husband being in the Malindi mortuary, confirming her fears.
The investigation continues, with police reports indicating that some victims were found in precarious conditions. Carolyne's agony intensifies as she waits for news about her sons against a backdrop of horror involving mass graves and cult activities in the area.
His corpse was found in July in the village of Kwa Binzaro, inland from Malindi and near the remote Shakahola Forest, where more than 400 bodies were found in 2023 in one of the worst ever cases of cult-related mass deaths. Ms Odour is now awaiting the results of DNA tests being carried out on more than 30 recently unearthed bodies.
I felt pain. I barely recognised him. His body was badly decomposing, Ms Odour, 40, said about her husband Samuel Owino Owoyo. She believes her sons, 12-year-old Daniel and nine-year-old Elijah, travelled with their 45-year-old father to Kwa Binzaro at the end of June.
Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Mackenzie is currently on trial over the so-called Shakahola Forest Massacre - and has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter. He is alleged to have told his followers they would get to heaven more quickly if they stopped eating - and there have been concerns he has been in touch with his followers from jail.
Ms Odour says her husband started listening to the teachings of Mr Mackenzie four or five years ago. He changed and he didn't want the kids to go to school, she said. When the kids would fall ill he'd say that God would heal them. He really believed those teachings.
On June 28, Ms Odour's husband left home with their two youngest sons. She got suspicious when he did not contact her again and later discovered he had not gone to his parents' village but had travelled east to Kwa Binzaro.
Retracing his steps, she discovered that he had taken a bus from their home in Busia county to Kwa Binzaro. After a few weeks, she received a call about her husband being in the Malindi mortuary, confirming her fears.
The investigation continues, with police reports indicating that some victims were found in precarious conditions. Carolyne's agony intensifies as she waits for news about her sons against a backdrop of horror involving mass graves and cult activities in the area.
