Kagera RPC Henry Mwaibambe.
Police in Kagera region have launched an intensive and extensive investigation on throat-cutting murderers who are alleged to be selling the body parts of their victims to neighbouring Uganda, the Regional Police Commander has said.
This grisly development comes in the wake of heinous killings of people with albinism that have placed people the disability and their relatives in perpetual fear for their lives and tainted the image of the country in Africa and beyond.
And as if this was not enough atrocity on innocent lives, elderly people and especially those with red eyes resulting from smoke as they blow to rekindle fire on firewood or charcoal stoves have fallen victim to cutlass wielding killers on the pretext that such people are witches.
As is the case with killers of people with albinism who are believed to be carrying out the attacks to get parts of the victims for superstitious rituals in search of quick and easy fortunes, so are the macabre murders in Kagera region where some people allegedly believe in ancient myths that sacrifice of innocent people would bring fortune to the perpetrators of the ghoulish criminal acts.
Other morbid killings which have stained the country include those in Mbeya where murderers were skinning their victims and allegedly selling the human skins in underground markets in neighbouring Malawi. Even before that there had been stories of people with warped minds in Kigoma who were killing people with bold heads in superstitious beliefs.
Kagera RPC Henry Mwaibambe has said the killings have made thousands of residents in Kagera region live in anxiety and great fear; adding that the police have tightened security and that investigations were underway at all points reported to be routes of human body parts smugglers and a dozen of suspects were being held in Police custody.
“We are investigating Kanyigo village which is in Tanzania and we have been told that through Lake Victoria to Kasensero shore in Uganda is also the murderers’ route but I am sure we will stop this boorish practice” he said adding: “It has been difficult for the Police because this crime is new to this region”
Kagera region has been experiencing various crimes such as illegal weapons; livestock robbery and illegal immigrants from neighbouring countries such as Rwanda and Burundi
“Since the reports of cut-throats emerged in August last year, three people have been found dead in Bukoba municipality and three others have been admitted to region government hospital in Bukoba with injuries” he said.
“Police postmortem has found that the three dead bodies have big cut at the back of their necks and big cuts on their heads,” he added.
However, the police boss has warned people to stop spreading rumours and false information saying by doing so many people in the region will live in apprehension.
Body parts of the victims are believed to be smuggled to Uganda where they are used by witch doctors in their rituals and ‘medicinal’ concoctions. Unconfirmed reports say body parts have become “good business” whereas some of businessmen in Kagera have make fortunes out of human bodies
Even though the Police in region insist that there is “no evidence yet” of human body parts smuggling, they have undertaken intensive investigation throughout the region.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
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