Lira man jailed 13 years for raping elderly woman

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A young man in Lira district has been sentenced to 13 years in prison after pleading guilty to raping a 63-year-old woman, in a case that left the victim pleading for protection from further harm.

Appearing before Justice Lawrence Tweyanze, the Masaka resident judge, sitting in Lira, Tom Ogwang admitted to the charge of rape and was swiftly convicted.

The prosecution presented the facts of the case, stating that on the night of January 19, 2025, the elderly woman was asleep in her house at Barilwa village, Ayac parish, Amac sub-county, Lira district, when Ogwang forced his way in.

He dragged her outside and sexually assaulted her. The victim raised an alarm, and two neighbours rushed to her rescue, catching Ogwang in the act. He was first taken to the local council chairperson and later handed over to police.

Ogwang accepted the facts as true and correct. The prosecution prayed for a deterrent sentence, arguing that a strong message needed to be sent against such crimes.

Defence counsel, however, pleaded for leniency, pointing out that Ogwang was a first-time offender who had not wasted the court’s time.

The victim, visibly shaken, directly addressed the court, demanding that her attacker face a long prison term. She told the judge that Ogwang had threatened to return, rape her again, and kill her.

“I want the convict to be put in prison, because he swore to come back, rape and kill me. He should be sentenced to 15 years,” she said.

In his ruling, Justice Tweyanze sentenced Ogwang to 13 years’ imprisonment as agreed in a plea bargain. After deducting the time he had already spent on remand, he will serve 12 years, five months and four days behind bars.

“My view is that the sentence will be good for you to learn to respect people,” the judge remarked.

Justice Tweyanze is in Lira to preside over a special criminal session handling 42 capital cases involving 43 accused persons.

The cases listed for hearing this month include 25 of murder, seven of aggravated defilement, five of aggravated robbery, four of rape, and one each of manslaughter, homosexuality, and aggravated trafficking in children.