A self-confessed serial child killer, Masten Wanjala, who recently admitted to killing ten children in Bungoma, western Kenya, has fled from Nairobi police’s custody under mysterious circumstances.
On Wednesday, he was scheduled to appear in court to stand trial. Wanjala was arrested in July of this year in connection with the disappearance of two children, a 13-year-old and a 12-year-old.
After his arrest, he took police to where he buried the children’s bodies, Junior Mutuku Musyoki and Charles Opindo Bala at Spring Valley Estate, Wetlands, and near Kabete Approved School in Nairobi.
Wanjala later admitted to a six-year killing spree spanning across four counties, where he killed all of his victims alone, some he killed with his bare hands. He acknowledged abducting and slaying at least 13 children in Nairobi and its surroundings during a wave of kidnappings that engulfed the city.
He took detectives to various areas in Bungoma County, claiming to have buried some of his victims there. Emmanuel Wafula, a nine-year-old boy who was violated before being murdered, was one of the victims whose body was placed in a pit latrine near a community in the Kimilili Constituency in February 2019.
Another, Haron Ajega, 73, was arrested at the time for the alleged murder of the minor. He died of an illness last year, despite the fact that a shadow of suspicion hung over his head because of his supposed involvement.
Wanjala claimed he kept track of his dark wins in Bungoma, Machakos, Nairobi, and Kajiado by writing down the names and dates of each victim he killed. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations(DCI) claims that he is accused of discarding the bodies of his victims in sewage pools, thickets, and pit latrines to hide his tracks.