A Rwandan man has pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including the murder of 12 women and two men, in a high-profile case that shocked the country.

Denis Kazungu, 34, is alleged to have buried his victims in his kitchen.

Police discovered the crime earlier this month after he was evicted from his rented accommodation in Kicukiro, a suburb of the capital, Kigali.

In a packed courtroom, after hearing the guilty plea, a woman cried out for her child who she said was a victim.

This hearing was called to determine whether Mr Kazungu should remain in detention. The judge will deliver a decision on 26 September.

Mr Kazungu, who did not have legal representation, looked calm and composed at the hearing and when asked to plea, said in a firm voice that he was "guilty".

He tried to justify his crimes by alleging that his victims "deliberately infected him with Aids" but not offer any proof of this.

The state of Mr Kazungu's mental health is unclear, but he appeared sound when he requested the court to put proceedings behind closed doors, a request that the court denied.

"I have done extreme crimes and do not want to be reported in the media," he said.

Mr Kazungu was arrested after his landlord had reported him to police for defaulting on rent payments for seven months.

A police official told Rwanda's private newspaper The New Times that he put up a fight when they evicted him.

"He apologised and cried excessively, which raised our suspicions," the official said.

"We detained him and I personally took him to the police. It is at the police station where he confessed to having killed some people, prompting Rib [Rwanda Investigation Bureau] to investigate his residence."

An Rib spokesperson said he lured his victims, mostly sex workers, to his home and would then rob them. He then "strangled them to death and buried them in a hole dug in the kitchen of his rented house".

Investigators are yet to reveal the names of all of Mr Kazungu's suspected victims.