A suspected serial murderer has been caught in Kenya following the discovery of multiple bodies at a quarry in Nairobi, with police claiming on Monday that he confessed to killing 42 women, including his wife. Collins Jumaisi, a 33-year-old man who lives near the quarry in the Mukuru neighbourhood in the capital’s south, was arrested early Monday, police said.

Douglas Kanja Kirocho, the acting head of police, stated that nine remains have been found from the quarry thus far. 

“It is becoming clear that we are dealing with a serial killer, a psychopathic serial killer who has no regard for human life,” said Amin Mohamed, the Director of Criminal Investigations. According to Mohamed, Jumaisi confessed to luring and killing 42 women and dumping their corpses at the quarry.

The murders date back to 2022, beginning with Jumaisi’s wife, and the most recent occurred on July 11, according to Mohamed’s broadcast statement.

Police said they discovered multiple mobile phones, identity cards, a machete thought to have been used to hack up the victims, industrial rubber gloves, rolls of sellotape, and a dozen nylon sacks similar to those found with the bodies.

Over the weekend, large crowds came to watch the remains, many of which had been dismembered, being removed from the quarry, with some engaging in running confrontations with police.

Rumours that the bodies were linked to purported abductions of young protestors by security agents during recent street demonstrations have incensed many local residents.

So yet, the authorities have not indicated that the discovered remains are related to the protests.

On Friday, a government spokeswoman published a police statement on X, stating that officials were testing materials to identify the deceased and that investigations were ongoing.

According to an activist with the Mukuru Community Justice Centre rights group, the majority of the bones were decayed, indicating that they had been there for a while.

Earlier this month, President William Ruto stated that reports of abductions by state agents were unfortunate and that any officers found responsible would be held accountable. Kenya’s police chief, Japhet Koome, resigned on Friday.