Shakahola horror: Enos Amanya seeks mercy as DPP demands stiff sentence
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Prosecutors tell Mombasa Court that guilty pleas will not wash away 429 graves.
He admitted his role in the Shakahola horror that left 429 people dead. He turned state witness.
Now Enos Amanya is asking the court for mercy, but prosecutors say the pain of hundreds of families cannot simply be wiped away.
Enos Amanya alias Haleluya returned to court on Tuesday hoping his guilty plea would earn him a lighter sentence in the Shakahola massacre case.
Amanya, charged alongside sect leader Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and 28 others, admitted to multiple counts of murder and related offences and agreed to testify for the state. His move was widely seen as a bid to reduce his punishment.
But the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions made it clear that admitting guilt does not erase responsibility for 429 deaths.
The prosecution team, led by Deputy DPPs Jami Yamina and Joseph Kimanthi, alongside Assistant DPP Ngina Mutua and Principal Prosecution Counsels Victor Owiti and Betty Rubia, told the court that the scale of the tragedy demands serious consequences.
Through his lawyer Kelvin Lisanza, Amanya said he was deeply remorseful.
He blamed years of radical indoctrination under Mackenzie’s teachings, including “fasting unto death” and rejection of formal education and government directives.
He recounted how he moved his family from Kasarani, Nairobi, to Shakahola in November 2020, believing he was following a spiritual path. Three of his children are still missing. Only his daughter, Israel Veronica, survived.
His lawyer asked the court to consider that he is a first-time offender who cooperated with investigators. But prosecutors reminded the court that behind every count in the charge sheet is a grieving family.
Among them is Dr Lewis Thoya Sirya, who lost seven relatives. Titus Ngonyo Gandi lost five family members, including a GSU officer.
Israel Veronica acknowledged her father’s regret but told the court justice must be done for the other victims.
Justice Diana Kavedza Mochache adjourned the matter to Thursday, when prosecutors are expected to present detailed submissions on sentencing.