Kenyan Officials Impose Curfew On Cult Leader's Ranch
Kenyan authorities have imposed a 30-day dusk-to-dawn curfew on the 320-hectare ranch owned by a pastor who is accused of directing his followers to fast to death.
The ranch, which is near the town of Malindi, has been declared a “disturbed area and an operation zone.”
The country’s interior minister announced on Wednesday that for 30 days, the area will be subjected to a curfew between 6 PM to 6 AM.
However, human rights activists and journalists have criticised the move to bar them from accessing the ranch.
As of Thursday evening, the death toll in the cult investigation stood at 95.
On Wednesday, police took 22 people into custody during the search and rescue operation on the land.
Authorities have rescued 34 people from the property, while the Kenya Red Cross Society said that 314 people were still missing.
The owner of the ranch, pastor Paul Mackenzie, is set to remain in police custody until at least 2 May.
The director of public prosecutions, Noordin Haji, on Wednesday, ordered investigating officers to identify the assets of the suspects for purposes of preservation, confiscation, and forfeiture.
Meanwhile, a famous self-proclaimed televangelist Ezekiel Ombok Odero of the New Life Prayer Centre was arrested on Thursday on allegations of killing his followers.
More: Pindula News
