Court to deliver verdict in sh9.5b Threeways Shipping Services fraud case

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The Nakasero-based Anti-Corruption Court is set to deliver its judgment today in a case where two directors of Threeways Shipping Services Limited are accused of stealing sh9.5b from MTN Uganda.

Justice Lawrence Gidudu will deliver the verdict in a case involving Oscar Baitwa and Geoffrey Bihamaiso, who have been on trial since 2012 on charges of theft and conspiracy to defraud MTN Uganda Limited.

The prosecution alleges that Baitwa and Bihamaiso stole the money through the use of fake invoices, falsely claiming that goods had been shipped and delivered on behalf of MTN.

Although Baitwa and Bihamaiso were initially charged with theft and conspiracy to defraud MTN of sh9.5b, the court, upon examining the evidence, found that they had a case to answer only in relation to $1,854,777 (about sh7b).

During final submissions, defence lawyers Henry Kunya, John Mary Muwaya, and Henry Kyalimpa asked court to acquit Baitwa and Bihamaiso of the charges.

On the other hand, the prosecution team, led by Abigail Agaba and Gloria Inzikuru, urged the court to convict the accused, stating that the case had been proved beyond reasonable doubt.

Prosecution’s Case

According to the prosecution, the two directors defrauded MTN Uganda of sh9.5b.

In a separate count, the prosecution said the accused allegedly conspired to steal the same amount from MTN Uganda.

Initially, former MTN employees — accountants John Paul Basebose and Naphatali Were — were charged alongside Baitwa and Bihamaiso. However, Basebose pleaded guilty through a plea bargain, and he refunded part of the funds to MTN, and the charges against him were dropped by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP). Were has since passed on.

The ODPP also discontinued proceedings against two other Threeways Shipping Services employees: chief finance officer Faridah Senkumba and logistics officer Kafuuko Waiswa,

Threeways Shipping Group, located along Jinja Road in Kampala, is a clearing agent that has been transacting business with MTN in the area of international forwarding. The offence was allegedly committed through the submission of fictitious invoices. The accused denied the charges.