Police to double number of investigators
Sep 29, 2014
The Police is to double the number of criminal intelligence officers in a move to raise its capacity to investigate rising cases of fraud.
By Pascal Kwesiga
KAMPALA - The Police is to double the number of criminal intelligence officers in a move to raise its capacity to investigate rising cases of fraud.
There are about 4,000 criminal investigators spread across Police stations countrywide. The new recruitment will bring the number to about 8,000.
The Director of the Criminal Intelligence and Investigations Directorate (CIID), Grace Akullo, told New Vision that the move was intended to improve handling of sophisticated cases.
“Doubling the number of CIID officers will ease handling and prosecution of cases. We will be in a position to manage sophisticated cases such as economic fraud,” Akullo said.
She made the disclosure in an interview with New Vision at Lugogo Grounds on Friday, on the sidelines of celebrations to mark 100 years of a transition from a colonial Police system to community policing.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Mike Chibita urged the Government to amend capital offence laws.
Chibita said the rule of suspects spending 48 hours in Police custody should be amended because cases like corruption and terrorism are hard to investigate.
“Bringing evidence against capital offences such as terrorism and corruption is hard. Suspects need to stay in cells until sufficient evidence is adduced,” he said.
Chibita noted that conflicts between the Police and prosecution had been highlighted in sanctioning charges preferred to suspects.
“The Police should respect the DPP in order to uphold the rule of law,” he said, saying cases of missing files in courts have increased as a result of corruption.
He warned the public against giving bribes to prosecutors, judicial officers and the Police.
The Inspector General of Government, Irene Mulyagonja, tasked the Police to weed out errant officers and clean their image, saying last year, over 150 complaints were registered against the Police.