Kenyan police have arrested Collins Jumaisi Khalusha, a suspected serial killer who confessed to murdering 42 women, including his wife, and dumping their dismembered bodies in a Nairobi rubbish tip.

Since Friday, nine bodies in plastic bags have been retrieved from the Mukuru slum dump site. Khalusha, 33, was arrested near a Nairobi bar early Monday.

He claimed the murders occurred between 2022 and last Thursday, with his first victim being his wife.

Authorities tracked Khalusha through the phone of one victim, catching him as he attempted to lure another.

A search of his home, located near the dump site, revealed a machete, sacks, rope, rubber gloves, a handbag, and female underwear. Autopsies on the victims, eight confirmed as female, are underway.

Another suspect, found with a victim’s phone, has also been arrested. This case intensifies scrutiny on Kenyan police, already under pressure for handling anti-government protests resulting in numerous deaths.

Kenya’s police watchdog, IPOA, is investigating any police connections to the bodies found near a police station and potential failures to prevent the killings, The Guardian has reported.

Following the discovery, all officers at the nearby police post were transferred.

Tensions at the crime scene escalated when volunteers searching for more victims clashed with police, leading to teargas being used to disperse the crowd.

Kenyan police have been criticized by rights groups for excessive force and unlawful killings, but few officers have faced justice.

Written by B.C. Begley