The Bengaluru police on Sunday claimed to have prevented potential serial killings with the arrest of a 26-year-old man who had already allegedly bludgeoned two men sleeping on footpaths to death in a span of seven days.

The accused has been identified as Girish M, a resident of Vasanthpura in south Bengaluru, who is an alcohol addict.

On May 13, the police found a man in his 20s stoned to death on K R Road under the Banashankari police jurisdiction. Similarly, on May 19, the body of a man in his late 20s was discovered near K R Market, and the police ascertained that he was also killed using a stone.

The Banashankari police made a breakthrough when they found Girish in a CCTV footage retrieved from a camera near K R road. The police then analysed more than 30 CCTV cameras and zeroed in on Girish, who was previously implicated in several cases. The police found that he had faced sexual harassment and robbery cases. In 2020, after serving 10 months imprisonment, he came out of jail and worked as a helper in a hotel and as a construction labourer, they said.

The police took him to custody for questioning, and he confessed to killing the two victims – on May 12 and May 19, respectively. The police are yet to establish the identity of the man who was killed on May 12. They said the victim had two tattoos on his right hand bearing the letters ‘VB’ and ‘NTR’. The investigation revealed that the man was killed for not giving cigarettes to Girish.

The police identified the second victim as Suresh, 26, a resident of Kaverinagar in Banashankari. The police said Girish knew Suresh and the motive of the crime was the latter’s refusal to give him money to buy alcohol. After killing Suresh, Girish took away his mobile phone, the police said.

“He (Girish) has no remorse or does not care about human lives. If he was not caught, he would have continued (the series of killings),” a police officer said.

According to the police, Girish’s father had separated from his wife and married another woman. He had sold their property in Banashankari and settled in Kerala.