Kenya serial killer suspect tortured to confess – lawyer

A man described as a “serial killer” by Kenya’s police was tortured into making a confession, his lawyer has told a court in capital, Nairobi.

Police said that Collins Jumaisi Khalusha, 33, confessed to having killed 42 women since 2022, including his own wife, after his arrest on Monday.

He was detained following the recent discovery of nine mutilated bodies at an abandoned quarry in Nairobi.

Prosecutors denied that he had been mistreated and the court said the suspect could be held for a month, pending further investigations.

John Maina Ndegwa, Mr Khalusha’s lawyer, said his client had been molested by officers and it was “laughable” to suggest that he had confessed.

After the hearing, at which Mr Khalusha appeared in handcuffs but did not speak, his lawyer said he hoped the confession would be expunged from the court records.

“He says he was strangled to confess. You could tell he was in distress, terrified and in anguish,” Mr Ndegwa told the BBC.

He added that he had asked that his client be taken to hospital for urgent treatment.

Mr Khalusha was arrested at a bar early on Monday morning as he was watching the Euro 2024 football final between Spain and England.

He then led officers to his house near the crime scene where 10 phones, a laptop, identity cards and personal female clothing were found, police said.

Since Friday, police have cordoned off the dumpsite, the Mukuru quarry, where the bodies were found in various stages of decomposition.

The victims were aged between 18 and 30 and were all killed in the same way, according to the police.

There has been shock and outrage in Kenya over the murders – and anger directed towards the police that such crimes could have gone unnoticed for so long.

Kenya’s police have been accused of widespread human rights abuses in the past – and the force is currently under investigation over deaths and abductions following recent anti-government protests.