A number of the victims of the Shakahola massacre have been found with missing body organs.
Documents filed in court by the police say that there is a possibility that the victims may have had their organs harvested before they were buried in mass graves.
“Post-mortem reports have established missing organs in some of the bodies of the victims so far exhumed,” said Chief Inspector Martin Munene in an affidavit.
“It is believed that trade on human body organs has been a well-coordinated network involving several players. It is suspected that more bodies may be still buried in the expansive land covering more than 1,000 acres,” said the inspector.
A process of identifying the victims through DNA profiling is still being done. A total of 112 bodies had been exhumed by the time the government stopped the process last week.
“It is believed that trade on human body organs has been a well-coordinated involving several players. It is suspected that more bodies may be still buried in the expansive land covering more than 1,000 acres,” say the police.
The exhumation exercise which was suspended due to heavy rains was supposed to resume last Saturday. By yesterday however, it had not yet been restarted.
On Friday, President William Ruto formed a Commission of Inquiry to probe the killings that have shocked the country, with more than 100 bodies dug out of mass graves on an 800-acre piece of land linekd to the cult leader.
Court of Appeal judge, Justice Jessie Lesiit, will chair the commission whose mandate will be to inquire into the deaths, torture and inhumane and degrading treatment of members and individuals linked to the Mackenzie-led Good News International Church in Malindi, Kilifi County.
The commissioners are Justice (Rtd) Mary Kasango, Dr Frank Njenga (psychiatrist), Mr Eric Gumbo, Bishop Catherine Mutua, Dr Jonathan Lodompui, Mr Wanyama Musiambu and Mr Albert Musasia.
Azimio La Umoja, led by Raila Odinga have however sued President William Ruto over his decision to appoint a Commission of Inquiry into the Shakahola Massacre.
In a petition filed at the High Court, the Azimio la Umoja coalition argued Ruto had usurped his powers upon the Parliament, which was legally allowed to form the said commission of inquiry.
Through his coalition, Raila argued that only Parliament had the legal and constitutional mandate to establish a commission of inquiry to investigate the Shakahola Massacre.
“We reiterate that only the Judicial Service Commission is empowered by the constitution to recruit qualified persons to serve in tribunals. The president has no powers to make any determination of the constitution of a court or an independent tribunal nor who sits in judgment in court or independent tribunal,” read part of the court documents filed by lawyer Paul Mwangi.
