Dar es Salaam. A suspect believed to be the
gunman on the run who shot dead eight people in a span of three days in
Tarime district has been arrested in Tanga region, The Citizen can
report. Home Affairs Minister Mathias Chikawe and Inspector General of
Police Ernest Mangu confirmed yesterday that the suspect was arrested on
Wednesday night. He is key to solving the mystery of the unprovoked
killings that shocked the country.
“It’s true that we have arrested the key suspect
in the serial killings. He was captured in Tanga after well-coordinated
intelligence work and has been taken to Tarime for final verification,”
IGP Mangu said.
Earlier, Mr Chikawe told The Citizen that they
believed the suspect was the lone gunman behind the heinous crime. “The
Tarime serial killer has been arrested police and this is good news for
the country.”
Asked to reveal the identity of the suspect, Mr
Mangu said it was too early to give such details as police were still on
the ground pursuing other sensitive information. He hinted, though,
that people close to the suspect may have played a big role in
pinpointing his hideout.
The suspect’s capture is being touted within the
Police Force as a major breakthrough in dismantling a syndicate of
dangerous and armed criminals operating across the country.
Police sources were also hailing the arrest as a
breakthrough for a newly-established police intelligence gathering
structure that involves them and officers from the directorate of
criminal investigations department to respond to underworld crime and
such cases as those in Tarime.
Teamwork was credited for the arrest of 15
suspects who were, by yesterday, being held for interrogation in Tarime
by officers led by the Commander of the Tarime/Rorya Special Police
Zone, Mr Justus Kamugisha.
Speaking on the phone, Mr Kamugisha said
appropriate information will be shared with the public when the high
profile investigation was complete. “All I can say for now is that we
have 15 people in custody,” he told The Citizen. “We arrested them in
several cities in the country as part of our investigation.”
The serial killings that rocked Tarime district
started on January 25 and early reports from investigators, including a
team sent from Dar es Salaam, pointed to a syndicate of criminals
working in cahoots with accomplices within and outside the area.
In total, the serial killer shot dead eight people
at close range in just three nights and injured several others in
spontaneous attacks early in the night. Life in Tarime was turned upside
down in the manhunt for the suspect and panicking residents were unable
to run carry out their business or attend to other chores.
It is not clear what the killer’s motive was,
besides robbing his victims of cash and other small belongings. There
was no clear target and only the pattern of the killings appeared to be
regular, as the gunman waylaid his victims.
Fear and shock has clouded the lives of Tarime residents since last week, when they had to contend with a killer on the loose.
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