Court has deferred to March 7, 2024, the human trafficking case against a senior Police officer after it was informed that his case file was taken to the International Crimes Division (ICD) of the High Court.  

Superintendent of Police Gilbert Arinaitwe, who is attached to the Crime Intelligence headquarters, is accused of human trafficking. If found guilty, Arinaitwe will spend the rest of his life in Luzira Prison.

When the case resumed today, February 8, 2024, State Attorney Judith Nyamwiza informed the court that Arinaitwe’s case file had been forwarded to the ICD. She, however, did not disclose why the file was forwarded to ICD.  

This prompted the Buganda Road Chief Magistrates’ Court presided over by Ronald Kayizzi to adjourn the matter to March 7, 2024, for mention.  

In the last court session, Kayizzi granted the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) a final chance to present witnesses or else he dismisses the case.

This was after Nyamwiza informed court that she had failed to get witnesses: “The witnesses are unreachable on their telephone contacts.”

Prosecution alleges that Arinaitwe and others still at large on June 2023 at Nalumunye Bandwe Kyengera Town Council in the Wakiso district, recruited or maintained or confined or transported or transferred or harboured facilitated or received Joan Namukasa; by means of threat or use of force other forms of coercion or deception or abuse of power or position of vulnerability for the purpose of sexual exploitation or forced labour or involuntarily servitude or debt bondage.

Arinaitwe came to the limelight in 2011 after he sprayed former presidential candidate, who is also former Forum for Democratic Change party president Dr Kiiza Besigye with pepper in the eyes during his (Besigye’s) walk-to work protests over the then skyrocketing fuel prices.