Nineteen more bodies have been exhumed from mass graves in Kilifi County, Kenya, raising the death toll linked to the starvation cult led by Pastor Paul Mackenzie to over 300. The grim discovery was made within the 800-acre forested area where Mackenzie and his followers resided. Authorities anticipate the number of victims to climb further as additional suspected grave sites are slated for exhumation. Coastal regional commissioner Rhoda Onyancha reported 613 individuals connected to the area remain missing.

Exhumed bodies of cult victims are loaded onto a truck in Shakahola, Kenya. (AP Photo)

On Monday, 65 followers rescued from the property were charged with attempted suicide following a hunger strike they initiated to protest their shelter placement. They have since been transferred to jail.

Mackenzie was initially arrested on April 14th after authorities were alerted to the possibility of numerous starvation deaths. Investigators found severely malnourished followers who had apparently been instructed by Mackenzie that starving themselves was a path to meeting Jesus.

Paul Mackenzie, the Kenyan pastor accused of leading the deadly cult. (AP Photo)

This is not Mackenzie's first encounter with law enforcement. He faced previous investigations and arrests in 2019 and March of this year, both related to deaths of children. He was released on bond in both instances.

Kenya is a predominantly Christian nation, with approximately 85.5% of the population identifying as Christian and 11% as Muslim, according to the U.S. State Department.

An abandoned house in the forest where bodies were exhumed. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images)

Recovery efforts in Shakahola, Kenya. (AP)

Mackenzie is scheduled for a court appearance this week. Police have been granted additional time to detain him while investigations continue. President William Ruto has compared Mackenzie to a terrorist, and Interior Minister Kindiki Kithure has indicated the possibility of charges related to terrorism or genocide.