Kenya: Police Officers Arrested Over Escape of Serial Killer

By Hillary Kimuyu

Three officers who were on duty when a suspected serial killer Masten Millimo Wanjala escaped from a city police station have been detained.

Police Inspector Philip Mbithi, Police Constables Boniface Mutuma, and Precious Mwende all attached to Jogoo Police Station, are in custody for allegedly aiding the escape of the self-confessed serial killer.

The three who were on duty when Wanjala allegedly escaped were arrested by their colleagues from the Nairobi Regional Criminal Investigations Office and will likely be produced in court on Thursday.

They will be charged with aiding escape from lawful custody and neglect of official duty contrary to sections 124 and 128 of the Penal code respectively.

On Wednesday, police were unable to explain how the man who confessed to murdering 13 minors after sexually molesting them and drinking their blood managed to escape from custody just hours before he was to be charged in court.

He was being held at Jogoo Road Police Station in Nairobi.

At least 20 people were questioned over the escape of Wanjala including some of the suspects who were in custody and police officers.

Buruburu Sub-County Police Commander Francis Kamau said Wanjala escaped in unclear circumstances on Tuesday night with reports indicating that he could have escaped during dinner time or thereafter as there was a power blackout at the station between 3pm and 8pm.

Following his arrest in July, the suspect led detectives to two murder scenes in Machakos county, five in Nairobi and two in Kajiado. Last month, detectives confirmed that Wanjala had killed four more minors in Bungoma, bringing the number of his victims to 13.

Investigations revealed that Wanjala single-handedly massacred his victims in the most callous manner, sometimes through sucking blood from their veins before executing them.

Police said the suspect was barely 16 years old when he executed his first victim, a 12-year-old girl who was kidnapped in Machakos in 2016.

Detectives established that all the murder victims were stupefied using a white substance in powder and liquid form, before being executed.

This article originally appeared on Nairobi news

Photo: Nairobi news