Court Martial charges 3 over info leakage

 Lt. Col Deziderio Baliddaat court. Photo by Michael Odeng 

Three soldiers including Lt. Col Deziderio Balidda have been charged with offences related to security at the army General Court Martial.

Court presided over by Lt. Gen Andrew Gutti on Tuesday charged the accused and remanded them to Makindye Military Police barracks.

Balidda, 57, was charged alongside WOII Robert Wanyama, 39, and Pte. Ivan Asiimwe, 28. The soldiers are attached to field Artillery division in Masindi district. Wanyama is a senior non-commissioned officer while Asiimwe is a gun repairer.

They were charged contrary to section 130 (1) of the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) Act No 07/2005.  Offences related to security carry a maximum penalty of death on conviction.   

 The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges, prompting court to remand them until December 20, when they will re-appear in court for mention of their case.                

It is alleged that the accused on August 16, this year at Naguru and Ntinda in Kampala and other various places in Masindi district recruited soldiers and disclosed vital information to an authorized persons with intent to prejudice the security of the defence forces.

Prosecution led by Raphael Mugisha informed court that investigations into the matter were still on-going.

Meanwhile the legal advisor to the chairman, Gideon Kattinda informed the accused of their right to legal representation, saying they have a right to representation by an advocate of their choice.

But the suspects instead allowed Maj. Patra Aisha, a lawyer provided by the state to represent them.