A Kenyan man suspected of being a “serial killer” appeared in a Nairobi court this week after police charged him with multiple murders following the discovery of the dismembered remains of nine people.
Police arrested Collins Jumaisi Khalusha, 33, early on Monday and arraigned him the next day, linking him to the bodies that were found floating in an abandoned quarry in a Nairobi slum on Friday.
Khalusha, officials said, confessed to murdering 42 women, with the first victim allegedly being his wife.
“We are dealing with a serial killer, a psychopathic serial killer who has no respect for human life, who has no respect and dignity,” Kenyan police investigations director Mohamed Amin told reporters on Monday.
However, the suspect’s lawyer, John Maina Ndegwa, said in court on Tuesday that Khalusha was “tortured” into making the statement. Prosecutors denied these allegations.
The discoveries have shone another spotlight on Kenya’s police and added more pressure on President William Ruto, who is struggling to contain a crisis spurred on by widespread antigovernment protests that have seen dozens of demonstrators killed.
Here’s what we know about the case so far:
What happened to the victims?
Nine dismembered and decomposing bodies were found in sacks between Friday and Monday at the Mukuru quarry, which is now used as a rubbish dump. Local searchers working with the police told reporters they counted more than nine bodies.
Police said the victims included eight women, while it was not clear if the ninth deceased was male or female. All were aged between 18 and 30 and were killed in the same way. Police said the murders started in 2022, and the most recent killing was on last Thursday.
The discoveries began after a woman paid locals to comb the quarry in search of her sister, Josephine Owino, who went missing on June 26. The searchers noticed the sacks and alerted the police. Owino’s fate remains unclear as none of the recovered bodies has been identified as her.
Police zeroed in on Khalusha as a suspect after an analysis of money transfers made on a mobile phone belonging to one of the victims, officials said.
A raid on Khalusha’s house, which police said was about 100 metres (110 yards) from the dump site, revealed 10 mobile phones, female clothing, a machete, and sacks similar to the ones the dismembered bodies had been found in, according to the police. There were also a laptop and several identity cards belonging to men and…