Diplomat in child paternity row, wife arrested over murder

KAMPALA - Controversy surrounds the mysterious death of a baby whose paternity is the subject of a family dispute between a diplomat and his wife. 

As a result, Police have arrested Joline Mutesi Dusabe, the wife of Chris Rugari, a businessman and Zimbabwe’s Honorary Consul to Uganda. 

Dusabe, who is suspected to have killed her two-and-a-half-year-old baby boy, Rugari Nganwa, is being detained at Jinja Road Police Station as investigations go on. 

Besides Dusabe, New Vision has learnt that the house maid whose name could not be readily established by press time, has also been quizzed to explain what transpired. 

New Vision has learnt that the toddler’s death came after Rugari subjected three of his five children to a DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) test, and discovered that he was the biological father of only one child — the other two are not his. 

As a result, Rugari filed for divorce at the family court in Makindye, Kampala, and court ordered that a DNA test be carried out on all the five children. 

“The DNA was supposed to be done on the other two remaining children. But one of the other two children died mysteriously, prompting the Police to arrest Dusabe,” a close family member, who preferred anonymity, told New Vision (Sunday, April 6). 

Kampala Metropolitan Police deputy spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire yesterday confirmed the arrest of the 40-year-old Dusabe in connection with the tragic death of her baby. 

Owoyesigyire said Dusabe, a resident of Mutungo Zone 8 in Nakawa division, was arrested to help in the ongoing investigations into the circumstances surrounding the toddler’s death. 

Dusabe reportedly told the Police investigators that “on the evening of April 1, this year, the baby identified as Rugari Nganwa slipped and fell through the window of the second floor of their two-storey residence in Mutungo and fell to the ground”. 

According to Dusabe, she rushed downstairs and rushed the baby to Kitintale Hospital for treatment as he cried uncontrollably. 

Reports indicate that on arrival at the health facility, medics examined the baby and later discharged them, but they recommended that the baby be subjected to a CT (Computerised Tomography) scan to establish if there was any damage to the head. 

However, the baby’s condition is reported to have later deteriorated and he was rushed back to hospital in critical condition. 

According to Police, the baby was pronounced dead on April 2. 

“The child’s body was conveyed to the Mulago City Mortuary for a post-mortem examination. However, the initial observation revealed no visible physical injuries on the body, which prompted us to arrest the mother,” said Owoyesigyire.

The death  

According to her statement to the Police, Dusabe claimed that on April 1 at 8:00pm, the child reportedly opened the window of the first floor of their house, jumped out and fell on the concrete pavers in the compound. 

Dusabe reportedly claimed that when she woke up in the morning of April 2 at about 6:00am, she realised that the child was breathing heavily and with a high body temperature. 

“Dusabe said she immediately called Kitintale Hospital to bring an ambulance. Unfortunately, the baby was pronounced dead on arrival. Immediately, the mother said she started calling her relatives and friends asking them to rush to the hospital and take the body to a funeral home,” the Police said. 

However, sources revealed that when the relatives of the child’s father arrived, they rejected her idea of rushing to remove the body before the Police could come in to examine it since her death was attributed to an accident.

Investigations 

By April 6, a Police forensics team had joined detectives attached to Jinja Road Division Police Station to probe the baby’s actual cause of death. 

The team, accompanied by scene of crime officers revisited the home with the suspect (Dusabe) to get a clear picture of where the tragic accident occurred. 

However, Rugari’s relatives have rejected Dusabe’s narrative. “We suspect foul play; how can a kid fall from a building and there is no single trauma, swelling, bleeding injury or even a scratch?” the family member wondered. 

Rugari’s family says the bolts on the window, through which Dusabe claimed that the child fell, were too high for a two-year-old child to reach, pull back and open it. 

“For the baby to jump through the window, it had to be supported to access it. His height could not enable him to access the window bolts, pull them back, open it and jump out,” another family member argued. 

Rugari’s family members added: “If the mother claims that she found the child lying in the middle area of the compound, which is some distance away from the window, it means that maybe the baby bounced like a ball to reach that point from where she claims to have picked him up while he was crying.”

The paternity row

It has since been established that at the time of the baby’s death, Dusabe and her estranged husband (Rugari) have been going through divorce proceedings after Rugari doubted the paternity of their five children. 

New Vision has learnt that in 2023, Rugari conducted a DNA test on three of his five children after suspecting that his wife was cheating on him. 

A family member revealed that the results turned out that two of them were actually not his biological children. 

Sources intimated to us that the two contested children have since been taken away from the house to an unknown location. 

Sources revealed that following the discovery, Rugari had reportedly moved out of the matrimonial home in Mutungo. 

“Rugari is now staying with his firstborn that a paternity test confirmed that he is the biological father of. The mother (Dusabe) was staying with the other four children,” the family member said.

Post-mortem 

When the Police took the body to Mulago City Mortuary for a post-mortem examination, they asked both parents to choose representatives to witness the exercise. 

“All the baby’s bones from head to toe were intact, which kept medical professionals wondering how a two-year-old kid could fall from six metres high, land on the concrete, but not experience any single injury,” a family member stated. 

Despite a 4.1% decrease in overall crime — from 228,074 cases in 2023 to 218,715 in 2024 — child-related crimes remain a major concern. 

The Police recorded 9,408 cases involving children as direct victims in 2024, with 862 of these cases making it to court. 

A total of 10,741 cases were reported in 2023.