BILBAO – After the case of an alleged gay serial killer in Spain made headlines, the suspect handed himself into the police.
He is suspected of at least 4 murders of homosexuals in Bilbao and has been wanted for a while. The murders were committed in September and October. He is said to have contacted his victims via the dating app Wapo for homosexual contacts.
Suspect arrested
The 25-year-old man who reported to the police in Irun, Basque, on Thursday, comes from South America. Nelson David M.B. denied his involvement in the case but was immediately arrested after his report despite his willingness to cooperate.
Photo and description leaked
This twist in the story comes as a result of the massive media coverage of the case on Thursday after both the identity and a photo of the suspect as the alleged perpetrator of the murders were leaked. He had been described by a victim who was lucky enough to escape in December. Furthermore, the authorities do not rule out the possibility the perpetrator has at least four other murders on his conscience.
Two murder cases opened
The suspect has a warrant for his arrest from a court in Bilbao. This court has opened two murder cases related to the alleged murders of men after meeting the suspect via the dating app.
Criminal past
The detainee, of Colombian descent, has a history of fraud and assault, according to the newspaper La Vanguardia, and has been staying, at least sporadically, in the Basque Country since 2019.
It is unclear how many murders are involved
In any case, the investigation continues under secrecy and it is not clear how many deaths are being investigated in each of the two pending proceedings. That number remains one of the great unknowns of the study.
Liquid Ecstasy
The use of liquid ecstasy played a role in the deaths of the murdered men. Initially, however, a natural cause of death was attributed. One of the major challenges for the authorities is to link the deaths to the modus operandi of the suspect.
Dating app cooperation needed
For this, cooperation was requested from the dating app Wapo, which the suspect used. One by one, the detectives are locating all the men the suspect has met to confirm they are still alive. In case they have died, the police will analyse under what circumstances that happened and whether the body was cremated or buried.
Complex research
Even though the Basque police no longer have to search for the suspect since yesterday, they are faced with a very complex investigation. According to sources familiar with the case, the suspect applied for asylum in Spain in 2019 but was denied. The suspect’s criminal activities in other Spanish communities are now also being investigated. Police have already confirmed that neither Madrid nor Valencia, where the Colombian is said to have been, have suspected cases consistent with the modus operandi that led to the deaths in Bilbao.
Two important clues on gay serial killer
The main clues on which the investigation is based relate to two events that occurred in Bilbao. The first is the death on October 18 of Josu M., which was initially attributed to natural causes. However, after the death, his brother discovered some suspicious transfers in his accounts that prompted the police investigation.
The second thread of the investigation was the complaint, in December. This time, a man who, after meeting the suspect, reported attempted strangulation, which he managed to escape.
The Ertzaintza investigation linked the two events with the deaths of other men allegedly using the gay dating app. The scale of these murders is still a great mystery to be solved.
