Kenya Offers Cash Reward for Escaped Serial Killer Suspect

Kenyan police are offering a “significant cash reward” for information leading to the capture of a serial murder suspect who escaped from custody. Collins Jumaisi Khalusha escaped alongside 12 suspects from Gigiri Police Station in the capital Nairobi on Tuesday.

Eight police officers have since been suspended and five charged in court over the escape, which police said was aided by insiders. Last month, police said Mr Khalusha had confessed to the murders of 42 women, including his wife, since 2022 – but his lawyer said he had been tortured to confess.

On Thursday, a wanted person notice was released by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) appealing for information that would help re-arrest Mr Khalusha. It said the suspect had been due to be charged with murder. “A significant cash reward will be provided to anyone with credible information leading to the suspect’s arrest,” the DCI said in the appeal, which asked the public to report confidentially to a police hotline, or to any police station in the country.

It has not disclosed exactly how much it is offering as a reward for the information. Mr Khalusha was arrested following the horrific discovery of the mutilated bodies of nine women last month at a disused quarry used as a rubbish dump in Nairobi. The victims were aged between 18 and 30, and were all killed in a similar way, according to the police. The escape of such a high-profile suspect, described by police as a “psychopathic serial killer”, has riled many Kenyans.

An incident report said that the 13 people escaped from the police station by cutting through a wire mesh roof and scaling a perimeter wall. The Gigiri police station is located 10km (six miles) from the city centre in an area hosting the regional headquarters of the UN and many embassies.

In February, Kevin Kangethe, a fugitive murder suspect wanted in the US walked out of a different police station in Nairobi where he was being held without anyone stopping him. He was re-arrested later and a court has since ordered his extradition to the US.

Source: BBC