Ndeeba church case: Police officers cleared, Dodoviko to defend self

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The Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala has cleared senior Police officers implicated in the demolition of Kampala city's Rubaga division-based St Peter’s Church at Ndeeba.

The acquitted officers are Kampala Metropolitan area Field Force Unit (FFU) commander Rashid Agero, Kampala Metropolitan South FFU zonal commander Martin Odero and Assistant Superintendent of Police Isabirye Kaloli, who is attached to Field Force Unit (FFU), Katwe.

The Police officers were acquitted on charges of abuse of office, corruption and conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour, after the prosecution failed to adduce evidence incriminating them of the crime.

“The prosecution has failed to prove their case against the Police officers. I, therefore, find them not guilty of the charges and they are hereby acquitted,” chief magistrate Racheal Nakyazze ordered.

The same court ruled that businessman Dodoviko Mwanje and Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) urban planner Ivan Katongole have a case to answer. Court has, therefore, directed them to defend themselves in the matter.

In a judgment dated October 22, this year, the magistrate directed that Mwanje defend himself on charges of conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour and theft, while Katongole will defend himself on charges of abuse of office and conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour.

The offence of theft attracts a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on conviction, while conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour elicits a three-year jail term. The offence of abuse of office attracts a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.

“A prima facie case is found to have been established against Mwanje and Katongole. They are hereby put on their defence,” Magistrate Nakyazze ruled.

According to the law, if court finds that the accused has a case to answer, they will be required to give their defence by giving their testimony and/or calling witnesses to testify.

The magistrate ruled that the prosecution had adduced evidence of theft against Mwanje.

“I find that the prosecution has presented evidence that there was property belonging to the church that was taken and Mwanje is required to offer an explanation,” the magistrate said.

Dodoviko is accused of stealing assorted church items valued at approximately shillings 850 million, the property of the Church, on August 10, 2020.

Prosecution alleges that Katongole, on July 28, 2020, at KCCA in Kampala, in abuse of the authority of his office, allegedly processed and issued demolition, hoarding and scaffolding permits to Ephraim Enterprises Limited in contravention of the Building Control Act.

Why were police officers acquitted?

The magistrate ruled that there is no evidence from the prosecution showing that the Police officers neglected to secure the church from demolition, which was their duty to perform by virtue of their employment and as directed by former Kampala Metropolitan Police commandant Moses Kafeero.

The court heard that Kafeero instructed Kakamba to ensure Police officers are deployed at the church after receiving intelligence that there was a threat of demolishing the church.

The magistrate noted that Police officer Agero and his troops witnessed successful vacant possession of the church land at the beginning, then deployments of the troops after the vacant possession was well done until August 2020.

Nakyazze ruled that there is no evidence that senior Police officers Agero and Odero did not hand down instructions to their subordinates during the church demolition exercise.

“The evidence presented shows that they handed down instructions and the place had deployments,” Nakyazze noted.

The magistrate also ruled that there is no evidence showing that Police officer Isabirye neglected to perform his duty.

She also ruled that there is no evidence showing that the Police officers gave protection to persons who unlawfully demolished the church without authority and in disregard of superior orders to protect the church from demolition.

“There is no evidence showing that the Police officers deployed patrol vehicles to protect people who were demolishing the church,” Nakyazze ruled.

The magistrate also ruled that the police officers did not conspire with Mwanje and Katongole to circumvent Regulation 28 (1) of the Building Regulations and cause the demolition of the church.

Nakyazze noted that the application for a demolition permit was made to KCCA, and no evidence was led to show that the police officers did any act or participated in the conduct of a demolition, circumventing Regulation 28.

“There is no evidence showing that the police officers participated in the demolition and nothing is connecting them to the conspiracy. The prosecution has failed to establish that there was an agreement between the police officers and the other accused persons,” she ruled.

During the hearing of the case, the accused were represented by lawyers Ambrose Tebyasa and Maxim Mutabingwa, while the state was represented by Chief State Attorney Stanley Baine.