A suspected serial killer has been arrested after bodies were found in a quarry in Nairobi, Kenya, and police said on Monday he confessed to killing 42 women, including his wife.
Police said a 33-year-old man, Collins Jumaisi, who lives near a stone quarry in the Mukuru area in the capital’s south, was arrested early on Monday.
Acting police chief Douglas Kanja Kirocho said nine bodies have been recovered from the quarry so far.
“It is becoming clear that we are dealing with a serial killer, a psychopathic serial killer who has no respect for human life,” said Amin Mohammed, director of the Criminal Investigations Department.
Mohammed said Jumaisi had admitted to luring and killing 42 women and dumping their bodies in a quarry.
In a televised statement, Mohammed said the murders date back to 2022, starting with Jumaisi’s wife, with the most recent incident occurring on July 11.
Police said they found several mobile phones, identification documents, a machete believed to have been used to hack the victim to death, industrial rubber gloves, rolls of Scotch tape and 12 nylon bags similar to those in which the victim was found when he was found.
The bodies recovered from the quarry over the weekend, many of them in dismembered state, attracted large crowds, some of whom struggled with police.
Many local residents have been outraged by rumors that the bodies are linked to suspected abductions of young protesters by security forces during recent street demonstrations.
Police have so far given no indication that the body found has any connection to the protests.
A government spokesman released a police statement about X on Friday, saying authorities were analysing samples to confirm the identity of the dead and that the investigation was ongoing.
Activists from the Mukuru Community Justice Centre, a human rights group, said most of the bodies were decomposed, indicating they had been there for a while.
Earlier this month, President William Ruto said reports of abductions by state agents were regrettable and that police officers found to be responsible would be held accountable. Kenya’s police chief, Japhet Coombe, resigned on Friday.
