A Malindi Court sentenced Pastor Paul Mackenzie to one year in prison.
In the ruling delivered on Friday, December 1, Malindi Senior Magistrate Olga Onalo sentenced the pastor for using video content without the approval of the Kenya Film and Classification Board (KFCB).
In addition, the magistrate handed the pastor another six-months sentence for operating a media house without a license as required by the law.
The two sentences, however, will run concurrently. Further, the Magistrate gave Mackenzie a 14-day window to appeal against the sentence.
The Friday ruling came after days after the Malindi Court found guilty for the two offences on November 10.
In his ruling, Justice Onalo said that the prosecution side had proven its case against the Good News International pastor beyond doubt.
As per the magistrate, the evidence adduced in court by the prosecution side and submissions in the court showed that Mackenzie’s church was the owner of the Times Television and hence the verdict.
“He needed a license which he did not have to and he needed to have the same taken for examination, but he failed to do so,” the magistrate ruled.
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“I thus find the defense tendered in lieu of the foregoing, not to have dislodged the prosecution case.”
The Good News International has been engulfed in a tussle with the state over suspicion of involvement in several crime activities.
How Mackenzie landed in endless court battles
In April, Mackenzie was arrested on the back of the discovery of multiple bodies in a farm located in Kilifi County.
Detectives drawn for the Kenya’s security agencies had embarked on investigations to ascertain the cause of the mysterious deaths.
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Consequently, Mackenzie and his close associates were arrested and charged for several offences.
Since then, Mackenzie and his associates had been in custody and have frequented court throughout the period.
Investigations into the mass deaths case and suspected cult is still ongoing with the prosecution side requesting time to finalize investigations.
