Four Katumba attackers were shot dead – Attorney General

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Attorney General’s chambers have confirmed that four of the people who were arrested in relation to the shooting of General Katumba Wamala and murder of his daughter and his driver were shot dead and therefore cannot be produced in any court for plea taking.

The four are; Idris Serwadda alias Swakibu alias Juma, Mustafa Kawawa Ramadan alias Musa alias Amin whose bodies were given to the relatives and have since been buried in their respective ancestral homes, and Juma Saidi together with Hussein Wahab Lubwama alias Christopher Kinene alias Master whose bodies are yet to be given to their respective families.

Kawawa was buried in Bombo in Luwero district while Serwadda was buried in Rwankoni in Kyotera district according to information obtained from  their lawyers led by Geoffrey Turyamusiima.

The confirmation of those who died has been revealed before the head of High Court Civil Division Justice Musa Ssekaana by the State Attorney Johnson Natuhwera.

Natuhwera was responding to an application demanding for the production of eight people who were arrested in relation to the death of Katumba Wamala’s daughter Brenda Nantongo Katumba and his driver Haruna Kayondo.

The duo were shot dead on June 1st 2021 along  Kisota road in Kisaasi, Nakawa Division by assailants who were moving on motorcycles. The former Chief of Defense Forces General Katumba Wamala survived death with gun shot  injuries which he is steadily recovering from.

Following the attack, the joint security agencies arrested a number of people between June 24th and July 2nd, 2021 but delayed to produce them before court.

As a result, the lawyers representing those who were arrested filed an application demanding for their production in court arguing that their rights to constitutional liberty and fair hearing were being infringed upon.

The lawyers in their application listed eight people and out of the eight who were listed, only three were brought to Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court and charged before being remanded over the matter.

These are: Kamada Walusimbi alias Mudinka alias Ogema, Muhammed Kagugube alias Bafumoya and Siriman Kisambira alias Mukwasi.

The others were those earlier mentioned whom the Attorney General’s chambers has confirmed to be dead with exception of Taata Juma whom they have told court that he is not any where in the government custody.

The State Attorney Natuhwera was relying on an affidavit sworn by Dinah Kyasiimire, the Acting Commissioner Civil  Affairs in Uganda Police Force who stated that the four were killed in action when the joint security was effecting their arrest.

“That I know that 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th applicants were killed in action”, reads the affidavit in part.

Kyasiimire however adds that the eighth applicant Taata Juma is not known to them and has never been in their custody.

The Attorney General contends that whereas one of the applicant’s lawyers who swore a supporting affidavit, Francis Nyakoojo said that they had tried to visit the suspects at the Special Investigations Department of Police in Kireka and failed, the Attorney General denies this saying it’s not true.

According to the evidence submitted to court by the  government chambers, the rest of the suspects have since been charged and remanded on charges of terrorism, murder and attempted murder.

However, in response to the submissions, the applicants lawyer Turyamusiima told court that they needed evidence in form of death certificates to prove that indeed those who are missing have since died and to show under what circumstances did they die.

As such, Justice Musa Ssekaana has ordered the Attorney General to adduce the death certificates before his court on Friday July 16th 2021.

Turyamusiima has told URN that they will be planning to see what next after the Attorney General provides evidence of death of their clients since the Ugandan laws do not provide for unlawful killings.

Turyamusiima argues that although they got information from Police earlier that two suspects were killed, the matters of the law have to be settled in courts since the death was never sanctioned by any lawful process as provided for in law.

Earlier, there was controversy on the number of people who were shot dead.

The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Major General Paul Lokech addressed the media and said that two had been shot dead. Days later, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces President Yoweri Museveni while swearing in New Ministers said three were shot dead and now the Attorney General’s chambers has upped the figure to four “killed in action”.

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URN