Serial child killer ‘unapologetic over his actions’

Christine Musa and Nyaboga Kiage 

Confessed child killer, Masten Milimu Wanjala, was only 16 when he murdered his first victim, 12-year-old Purity Maweu.

Wanjala kidnapped the minor at Kiima Kimwe in Machakos County, sucked her blood and left her for dead.

Purity’s killing marked the beginning of a spate of child disappearances and murders, all of which Wanjala would document by date, until last Sunday when detectives pounced on him following the disappearance and subsequent murder of two minors.

Yesterday, a Nairobi court allowed Homicide detectives to detain Wanjala for 30 days as they conclude investigations into the killing of at least 13 minors in the most gruesome of ways.

Detectives established that three years after Purity’s abduction and murder, the suspect killed his second victim, a 13-year-old boy only identified as Aaron in his home village of Kimilili, Bungoma county.

Wanjala yesterday recounted to police the gory details of how he killed the innocent boy, leading to major protests in the area.

The protests would culminate in residents raiding Wanjala’s grandfather Aaron Achera home on suspicion that he was behind the child’s murder.

The family members, however, escaped unhurt.  Kimakwa sub-location assistant chief Florence Kirimocho yesterday narrated how Achera died a bitter man, angry that he was framed for a crime he never committed.

Wanjala, on his part, would flee the village, never to be seen or heard from until Tuesday when he was arrested in connection with the murder of two minors.

“The vampire has been on a killing spree targeting children between the ages of 12 and 13 years,” read a statement from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).

In the latest case which emerged yesterday, Wanjala lured two boys from Kitengela and Mlolongo areas to their death trap, before strangling them and dumping their bodies in a sewer line.  Their bodies are yet to be recovered.

“The forensic trail painstakingly pursued by our sleuths has placed the killer at the scene of every macabre killing that he masterminded.

“This afternoon (Wednesday), he led detectives to Githaruru in Kabete where he had dumped the bodies of two boys recently kidnapped from Majengo,” read the statement.

Police added that detectives had established that all the murder victims were stupefied using a white substance in powder and liquid form, which the victims were either forced to drink or sprayed with before being executed. 

“The murderer, who is unapologetic over his actions, told detectives that he derived a lot of pleasure from killing his victims,” the statement added. 

“As detectives pursue crucial leads to the recovery of the rest of the bodies, it is our belief that the criminal justice system will serve justice to the innocent souls and relieve the heavy hearts of the mourning parents, siblings and Kenyans in general.” 

Yesterday, detectives investigating Wanjala’s dark past arrested another man on suspicions he could have aided the suspect in committing the crimes.

The man, an eggs hawker in Kitengela town, is Wanjala’s cousin whom he would frequently visit.

It is on one of those visits that Wanjala was arrested on Mwireri road in Kitengela township on Sunday after detectives tracked his phone signal to the area.

It emerged that Wanjala is well known to some Kitengela residents as he frequented his cousin’s place and freely interacted with neighbours. During interrogation, Wanjala confessed to abducting and murdering two more boys within Kitengela area.

Member of cult 

Wanjala, according to a source within the investigating team, revealed that the two boys, aged between 12 and 13, were street boys in the area. Their bodies are yet to be found.

“We are investigating a possibility that the two could have been street boys, according to the confession given by the suspect. We have no formal report at the police station. We are trying to profile known street boys in the town to perhaps narrow down on possible specific victims,” said the detective.

Police now believe Wanjala could be a member of a cult. “The suspect seems to be of sober mind and says his employer asks him for blood and he finds pleasure in killing young children, especially boys,” said the detective.

During interrogation at the Kitengela DCI offices, Wanjala was found in possession of a pocket calendar he allegedly uses to mark his executions.

“From our preliminary investigations we have established that Wanjala has worked with other suspects whom he claims asked for ransom without his knowledge,” said the detective.

Shocked Kitengela residents who have interacted with Wanjala termed him as social. “It is sad and shocking that such a notorious murderer comes here frequently. We have never suspected him to be of bad behaviour because he appears normal and is very friendly,” said a resident.

Since his arrest on Sunday, Wanjala, a former remandee at the Kabete Approved School, has confessed to killing at least 13 children. On Tuesday, Wanjala led detectives to the scene in Kabete where three decomposing bodies were found.

The bodies of Charles Opindo Bala, 13, and Junior Mutuku Musyoki, 12, who disappeared on June 30 and July 7, 2021, respectively, were on Tuesday night found dumped in a thicket near Kabete Approved School.

Wanjala would later lead police to another thicket near the same institution, where they recovered another body in a manhole.

Dressed in a sky blue T-shirt, navy blue pair of khaki trousers and black plastic sandals, Wanjala remained composed as he took detectives to the places where he had dumped the bodies of his victims.

It has since emerged that Wanjala was admitted to Kabete Approved School for truancy, hence his thorough knowledge of the area where the three bodies were recovered.