Body exhumed from ex-Jinja city education officer home

BUIKWE - Police have exhumed the body of a woman believed to have been murdered in what seemed to be a ritual sacrifice in Buikwe district.

The development at the upcountry homestead of former Jinja city education officer Amina Mutesi located at Mbukiro village, Nyenga division, Njeru municipality in Buikwe district, was on Thursday, June 5, 2025, after the Police secured a court order.

Mutesi, who was linked to the April 2025 incident, is said to have asked a casual worker she had hired to work in their shamba to get her a human being for sacrifice in order to settle problems associated with her interdiction as a result of abuse of office.

On hearing of an offer of three million shillings in return for fulfilling her request, the casual worker who had so far received a shillings 500,000 deposit contacted another person, and they settled for Jessica Mutesi.

The late Jessica Mutesi, said to have been murdered by Amina Mutesi, in what seemed to be a ritual sacrifice in Buikwe district. (All Photos by Jackie Nambogga)

Security operatives at the crime scene after exhuming Jessica Mutesi's body that had been buried at the ex-Jinjacity education officer's home in Nyenga division, Buikwe district.

A former resident of Kiramoja village, Walukuba/Masese parish in Jinja city southern division, Jessica, who was craving for a job, was quick to be hoodwinked into employment as a maid in Buikwe.

Upon sending her money for transport, she travelled to Njeru and they connected to Amina’s home where she was given a room in the boys' quarters while the duo also spent a night in another room.

However, Jessica’s second day marked the end of her life when she was allegedly on that night strangled to death and according to Ssezibwa Police region spokesperson Hellen Butoto, she was stealthily buried in a mixed coffee and banana plantation.

Amina Mutesi, the embattled former Jinja city education officer accused of hiring a casual worker to secure a human being for rituals.

Amina Mutesi (C), being led to a waiting vehicle after visiting the scene of crime at her home in Nyenga, where Jessica Mutesi's body was exhumed on Thursday.

Locals, who looked shocked, witnessed the exhumation exercise jointly executed by the Ssezibwa region Police together with their Kiira counterparts led by Milton Begumamu Birungi, its CID, Police pathologist, Flying Squad Unit, including detectives from Jinja and Njeru central Police stations.

Luck runs out

Amina's luck ran out when she allegedly failed to clear the balance, which prompted the duo to switch to Jessica’s family while asking for a ransom before being released from hostage.

The family, which later filed a case of abduction at Walukuba Police attracted full-scale commencement of investigations and tracking, which resulted in arrests.

Nicholas Gasodo alias Rashid Gadala (in shorts) who confessed to killing Jesca Mutesi being led to the spot where they buried the deceased at Amina Mutesi's home in Nyenga, Buikwe district on Thursday.

One of the casual workers was tricked into picking shillings 2.5 million, hence his arrest, and eventually revealed how they had been hired by Amina into the deal.

Body found

Detectives picked the prime suspect, Nicholas Gasodo aka Rashid Gadala, who was clad in a pair of short black trousers, along with Amina, who had been under custody at Nalufenya Police in Jinja city, to the scene under a heavy downpour.

Under tight security, Gasodo first led detectives to a big banana tree purporting to have buried the deceased, but they quickly told him to reconstruct the spot.

He would then walk to the exact spot where they had buried the deceased and planted a small banana tree on top to disguise that it was a new plant, yet it had also withered.
Jonathan Naluwaya, the area defence secretary who witnessed the exhumation, said the folded body had been tied with a piece of cloth around the mouth.

Jessica Mutesi's body was exhumed behind a pit latrine in a mixed coffee and matooke garden at the former education officer's home in Nyenga division, Buikwe district.

Police were forced to whisk Mutesi away from angry residents who wanted to aim at her over the manner they buried the deceased.

“Locals wanted to take Mutesi’s animals if they had not taken them away and out of pain, they also wanted to lynch the home caretaker, but she was also whisked away,” Naluwaya said.

Area LC1 chairperson Esther Nakakande explained how they were proud of and respected this homestead without knowing that Amina was such a 'bad person'.
“She had been coming back to her home over the weekend, and we assumed she was good,” Nakakande regretted.

Security operatives cordoned off the home of Amina Mutesi while exhuming Jessica's body in Nyenga division, Buikwe district on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Nyenga LC3 division chairperson pastor Moses Bamu, described the incident as disheartening because it had given the area a bad image. 

“We have lived in this village with Amina’s parents-in-law and her husband Fred Bazibu, a secondary school teacher in Jinja where he is also the patron of Scripture Union, but they didn’t have any bad record,” he said.

Family members pleaded for justice to prevail, saying Jessica was the sole breadwinner who was taking care of her children, including one with a mental disorder.

“When Amina was remanded, she complained of being disconnected from her family, but she totally disconnected Jessica. We need justice,” Samia Naiga noted.

Nicholas Gasodo Nicholas a.k.a Rashid Gadala (in shorts), as he led operatives to the burial spot of the deceased at Amina Mutesi's home in Nyenga, Buikwe district on Thursday.

Farida Namusobya, another relative, lauded security for standing with them all through, but asked police to deny her bond, which she had applied for.

Police, led by the pathologist, took the body to City Mortuary in Kampala for a postmortem, and later, a DNA test will be undertaken.

Accordingly, Kiira Police spokesperson James Mubi said the two suspects who were in their custody, including the file, were handed over to Ssezibwa region, where Butoto said they would handle the matter to its conclusion.