One of the stories that dominated headlines both in mainstream outlets and across social media platforms this past week was the unravelling of a suspected serial killer in Busanza, located in Kanombe sector of Kicukiro district who it was established, possibly killed over ten people and buried them in the compound of his rented home.

Since the announcement of his arrest was made public by Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB), many stories have come out including in this publication, all pointing to tell-tale signs that something sinister was going on in the suspect’s compound for months.

ALSO READ: How three women escaped death at the hands of Busanza ‘serial killer’ Kazungu

From the various testimonies, the common denominator is that neighbours knew something wrong was happening in this particular home, yet nothing was done in reasonable time, which may have probably saved a life or two.

ALSO READ: Busanza 'serial killer': How three women escaped death

For instance, in one of the testimonies, a neighbour claimed to have personally saved some three women who escaped to her place after fleeing from the suspect. Some showed up at her home with bruises said to have been inflicted on them by the suspect.

What is rather of concern, however, is that the residents reported the matter to a particular local leader who always downplayed the conflict, for whatever reason, and life continued. The said leader always reduced the incidents to fights between the perpetrator "and his sex workers”.

ALSO READ: RIB arrests alleged serial killer

Then there were revelations by the owner of the home where the suspect lived, that they had clashed on a number of occasions over different reasons including defaulting on rent and ensuing efforts by the tenant to deny him access to his property.

The fact that the victims whose ordeal was relegated to a ‘friendly fight” is of concern and calls for thorough check on local leaders and residents alike to know how much they understand the concept of community policing.

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While the particular local leader has a particular share of blame in this matter, in case the allegations turn out to be true, it is important that the engagement around community policing is revived to show Rwandans that there are more than one option when it comes to reporting suspicious characters in their communities.

With the advent of social media, we are not short of reporting channels and people must be encouraged to use them.

Most importantly, the concept of community policing, means that the citizens have direct contact with police. It means that the layer of local leaders, where necessary, can be skipped for the greater good to be served.