Landlord accused of raping tenant's maid acquitted after six years in jail

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A man, who is accused of raping his tenant's housemaid, has been acquitted by the Supreme Court after spending six years in jail.

Moses Kabareebe had been sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for unlawfully having sexual intercourse with Juliet Akello, without her consent.

However, the Supreme Court, led by Justice Percy Night Tuhaise on July 9, 2025, quashed the appellant’s conviction and sentence, saying the evidence on record raises serious doubts as to the cogency of the prosecution evidence for proof of the offence of rape.

Other justices on the panel were Stephen Musota, Christopher lzama Madrama, Catherine Bamugemereire and Monica Mugenyi.

“lt would have been sufficient for proof of the offence of defilement, where the consent of a victim is immaterial, but not for the offence of rape that hinges on non-consensual sex. In any case, defilement is not a minor and cognate offence to rape,” Tuhaise noted.

The prosecution had claimed that on October 25, 2019, at about 3.00pm in Kyebando, Kampala district, the appellant had unlawful sexual intercourse with Akello.

The justices said in assessing evidence in order to arrive at a verdict, a court may take into account the fact that an accused person did not give evidence on oath, but it must be exercised with caution and must not be used to bolster up a weak prosecution case or be taken as an admission of guilt on the part of the accused.

According to the justices, the victim’s explanation that she was told by the appellant not to disclose that she had a child would suggest that she was comfortable enough with her supposed rapist to have maintained contact with him after the alleged rape incidents and dutifully complied with his instructions.

The justices said the evidence raises questions as to whether there was absence of consent in the victim’s sexual relationship with the appellant.

The court heard that the appellant continued maintaining contact with the victim even after he was arrested and asked her not to abort the child if she turned out to be pregnant.

“The evidence raises doubts as to whether the conduct of the appellant and his supposed victim is consistent with non-consensual sex, a critical ingredient of the offence of rape; as opposed to a consensual sexual relationship,” Tuhaise said.