Two suspects have been arrested in connection with the killing of a night security guard, with one suspect confessing to the murder of 15 people.
The alleged serial killings include three in Bole and Banda in the Savannah Region, according to the Upper West Regional Police Commander, ACP Francis Yiribaare.
News of the murders was disclosed at a Wednesday press briefing by the police. The murders which have sent shockwaves through local communities, apparently form part of a broader pattern of violence.
“In addition, the suspect [Sherif Abdullai] later admitted during the interrogation that he has killed 15 people in the Wa municipality since 2021. And that is prior to the recent killing of Issah Yahaya, the watchman.
“He further noted that he usually targets watchmen and mentally challenged persons,” the police explained.
“He confessed that he had killed three more mad men and two watchmen at Bole in the Savannah Region, and then further [killed] one mad man in Banda Nkwanta, also in the Savannah region, and one mad woman in Bamboi, also in the Savannah Region. He carries his victims on his shoulder and buries them in bushes, unnoticed.”
Both suspects are in the custody of the police, currently assisting investigation.
The announcement of the arrests came as police unveiled details of an ongoing investigation into the attack on a security officer, whose identity is being withheld pending further processing.
In 2022, several night security guards in Wa and surrounding areas were reported missing or found dead under gruesome circumstances.
These incidents alarmed the public and drew in traditional authorities and the police.
One body, for example, was found in a shallow grave with body parts missing, including mutilations, which fed speculation about ritualistic motives.
The recent discovery of Issah Yahaya (also known as “Soldier”), the night watchman in Dobile, whose body was found under a shed near Wa’s new market with severe head injuries and a knife on his chest, has reawakened fears that the serial killings are resuming.