Police in Argentina have detained a suspected serial killer accused of luring homeless individuals into his home, murdering them, and dismembering their bodies.
Authorities report that around five murders occurred, all on Fridays, according to CBS News.
The 37-year-old suspect, referred to by local media as the “machete man,” was apprehended after a police raid uncovered “bones, blood, pieces of skin and even a nose,” CBS reported, quoting Attorney General Sergio Lello Sanchez.
During the raid, police found the suspect’s 16-year-old nephew, who told investigators that his uncle would leave on Fridays and return with different individuals each night, mostly homeless or elderly, according to Lello Sanchez.
The nephew recounted to authorities that his uncle would “beat them, kill them, cut their bodies, burn them, and take them out in garbage bags,” a case prosecutor told the A24 news channel.
The suspect has been identified as Matías Jurado, a local resident whose neighbors claim he threatened people with machetes, set fires, carried suspicious bags, and pushed wheelbarrows around at night. Jurado maintains his innocence, CBS reported.
Despite the nickname “the machete man,” local residents reportedly never suspected Jurado of being a murderer, A24 reported. Police launched their investigation after five people disappeared from the same bus stop in the city of San Salvador de Jujuy, according to authorities cited by the outlet.
Jurado has been charged with aggravated homicide and placed in pre-trial detention for four months pending further investigation, CBS reported, citing Lello Sanchez.
