The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The High Court International Crimes Division in Kampala has sent Abdul Swamadu Muyomba to Luzira Prison to serve six months for failure to bring a Major Muhammad Kiggundu murder suspect he stood surety for. The suspect, Bruhan Balyejusa Kalyango, is the second person to run away from this high profile murder case.
This is in the case in which eight people are facing charges of murdering Major Muhammad Kiggundu and his bodyguard, Sergeant Steven Mukasa, in 2016.
Muyomba was jailed after acknowledging that he is unable to pay the sh250 million he committed himself to pay if one of the suspects, Bruhan Balyejusa Kalyango, flees.
The surety was jailed by a panel of four International Crimes Judges led by Susan Okalany following a request by the Prosecution, which was being represented by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Thomas Jatiko. Other Judges on the Panel include Boniface Wamala, Vincent Wagona and Alice Komuhangi Khauka.
The same Judges have also issued criminal summons against two others who stood surety for Balyejusa to come and explain why they should not be sent to prison as well.
The law provides that if an accused person runs away from the case, the person who stood surety for him has to report to the Court and be able to pay the monies he or she committed themselves to pay and failure to do so, that person goes to prison.
The same Court has also issued a warrant of arrest against Balyejusa after he failed to show up in Court on different occasions shortly after being granted bail.
The other suspects in this case include Sheikh Yahaya Mwanje, Yusuf Nyanzi, Mohammed Buyondo alias Matiya, Abdu Wahab Sendegeya, Musa Ssekandi alias Masanafu, Jibril Kalyango alias Bin Suleiman, and Noordin Lutaya alias Ibrahim Ssemwanga alias Superman.
The available evidence indicates that the Prime Suspect, Sheikh Yahaya Mwanje, was seen along the Northern by-pass shortly before Kiggundu and his bodyguard, Mukasa, were murdered in Masanafu, a Kampala Suburb, on November 26th 2016.
Yet before the attack, he had reportedly released recordings containing hate speech sentiments directed at Kiggundu.
The DPP’s records also show that Kiggundu, before his murder, had indicated that Mwanje was threatening to kill him, and he was reportedly in constant communication with his co-accused, whom he would delete call logs immediately after the conversations.
The DPP says that Mwanje, who was the head of Nakasero Mosque, had threatened to kill Kiggundu and a faction of other Muslim clerics because they were against his leadership and management of the projects of the Mosque.
Balyejusa is the second person to run away from this high profile murder case.
A few years ago, Shafique Kasujja ran away from the case in which he and Balyejusa, and others were being charged with the murder of former Police Spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi, which occurred on March 17th 2017.
Kaweesi was murdered with two people who were part of his security detail,l including Kenneth Erau and Godfrey Mambewa.
The absence of Balyejusa also implies that Kaweesi’s murder file is also short of two suspects since Balyejusa was also facing both Kaweesi murder and Kiggundu murder charges.
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