12 suspects, including police officers, have been arrested in connection to the robbery of Shs2.2 billion from the home of Ambassador Nekesa Barbara Oundo, the treasurer of the National Resistance Movement (NRM).

According to Police Spokesman SCP Fred Enanga, the robbery occurred on December 5, 2023, at around 04:47 P.M at the residence of Oundo and Hajji Mafabi Sulaiman Lumolo (her husband) in Kyeitabya zone, Bukasa parish, Makindye division in Kampala district.

The case is being investigated by the territorial police in Kampala Metropolitan Area. According to Enanga’s statement, the robbery was engineered by PC Michael Wango, who had stayed at their residence as a home guard for more than one and a half years.

He hatched a plan with two other police officers — Sgt. Idro Dominic, PC Sharif Mugoya, and civilians: Edgar Arinda, alias Watson, and Rogers Niwagaba. However, the mission was executed by Wango Mugoya, Arinda, and Palaso who replaced Niwagaba.

To avoid detection, Wango disabled the alarm system, which was controlled and monitored by the guards at the main gate security sentry room. He also disconnected the electric wires, mounted on top of the perimeter wall as well as the security lights around the area he had earmarked for entry. He further adjusted the CCTV cameras to avoid capturing footage from the direction his accomplices would use.

At around 10 P.M. his accomplices gained entry into the compound and laid in wait till 4 A.M. They inflicted controlled injuries on Wango’s head, picked the two rifles in his possession, and thereafter proceeded to the servants’ quarters where they forced the three maids to open the main house. After gaining entry into the main house, the suspects broke the four doors inside the house.

They traced and located Nekesa, who also serves as Uganda’s High Commissioner to South Africa, from her hiding place and threatened to harm her and she led them to the bedroom where they kept their money. Her husband was not at home.

The suspects carried the money in five bags. They escaped through the small gate with the bags, an iPhone 12 Promax, a golden ring, a DVR for the CCTV system, a Tecno Spark 9 smartphone, and a Huawei 19 mobile phone. They also disappeared with the two police guns and 60 rounds of ammunition, which Mugoya abandoned in a potato garden, 200 meters away from the residence.

They proceeded and hid in a banana plantation where their rider Josh Kalinda found them. They had in their possession three bags after two other bags were hurriedly dropped in the banana plantation by Arinda and Palaso when they saw a local security guard advancing towards them with a torch.

Mugoya and Arinda boarded one motorcycle to Nsambya barracks with two bags of cash as Palaso boarded another motorcycle and disappeared from his accomplices with a bag containing an unspecified amount of money.

Ambassador Nekesa reported a robbery of Shs41 million that was hers. An additional complaint was made by her husband, Lumolo, of Shs2.2 billion that was robbed from his safe. The total amount stolen from the home was Shs2.241 billion.

According to Enanga’s statement, Mugoya shared the loot with accomplices, with Shs220 million going to Wango (out of which Shs20 million was reserved to secure his bail in case he is charged to court). It was handed over to his uncle Emmanuel Basooma who travelled from Budongo village in Namutumba district to Nsambya barracks.

Arinda was given Shs200m, the Boda rider was given Shs20m; Idro, who did not participate was given Shs8.8m; and Mugoya kept for himself Shs230m.

On December 10, one Samuel Opio Obote, a 60-year-old casual laborer while grazing goats of his boss, Matiya Rulangwa at Kyeyitabya village picked up an unspecified amount of money together with an empty bag and a CT police uniform.

He kept it in a container and started spending it lavishly. His boss Matiya Rulangwa, and one Masembe also picked some of the money. The balance was handed over to Patrick Apunyo by Opio and they escaped and hid in Lugazi.

Wango, Arinda, Mugoya, Basooma, Niwagaba, Opio, and Rulangwa, were charged with four counts of aggravated robbery. Ssempanga, Nyiro, and Apunyo were charged with receiving and retaining suspected stolen property and Idro was charged with being an accessory after the fact.

All 12 suspects appeared before the Chief Magistrates Court in Makindye and were remanded until January 25 for further mention of the case.

Palaso and other accomplices who are still at large are being hunted by the police.

Pulse UG