A serial killer is said to be behind the killing and dismemberment of as many as 42 women's bodies, whose remains were found in rubbish bags in a quarry on the outskirts of Nairobi. But he may not be the only one.
The mystery surrounding the findings, as we reported yesterday, had been going on for days, during which time the most gruesome but also rabid hypotheses had been overlaid, including that of extrajudicial killings by the police in the wake of anti-government protests that had already claimed more than 40 lives. But as the body parts were recovered and the investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) proceeded, it became clear that we were dealing with a series of feminicides, carried out according to a precise ritual.
Investigations that marked a probable end point with the arrest of a man, Collins Khalisia, who is considered the main suspect and who has allegedly already admitted to the 42 murders, which began in 2022 with those of his wife, in the Mukuru Kwa Njenga slum.
Khalisia reportedly recounted the details of the feminicides, admitting that he would not stop, but that he had identified the next victim, shortly before his arrest.
Men who hate women: the serial killer allegedly told investigators that anger rose after he was disappointed with his wife, especially the way she handled the family business. From there on, he would focus on women described as 'beautiful', aged around 18 to 30. "Apparently he is a person full of revenge and hatred and, according to what he told us, he had a particular fondness for special women," DCI director Amin told the press. While investigations continue, the doubt remains that repentance is leading the serial killer to take on murders not committed by him and that a macabre ritual for eliminating women may have existed in that neighbourhood.
On this and on the urgency of opening the promised counters for women victims of violence or threats and allocating funds for gender equality education, women parliamentarians also spoke yesterday, on an issue that appears to be a priority in the country, beyond the anti-government protests and the just battles of young people, such as the one against rampant corruption.