Police deepen probe into aggravated child trafficking in Budaka

BUDAKA - Police have intensified investigations into a case of aggravated child trafficking involving a 15-year-old Congolese refugee who was recovered weeks after being reported missing, only for medical examinations to reveal she is pregnant.

The victim, identified as Gift Aleyene, was reported missing on November 3, 2025, at Naboa Police post in Budaka district.

She was recovered on November 17, 2025, from Gadumire village in Budaka, at the home of the mother of Aisha Negesa, the woman who initially reported her disappearance and is now the prime suspect, according to a Police report released on December 16, 2025.

According to Bukedi North Police region spokesperson Wilfred Kyempasa, a medical examination conducted on November 18 confirmed that the minor was pregnant, raising the case from disappearance to aggravated trafficking and sexual exploitation of a child.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the victim, who only speaks Kiswahili, was trafficked across multiple refugee settlements — from Nakivale in Kisoro district, to Kyangwali in Hoima, before being taken to Budaka, where Police say she was further exploited.

Police say the suspect allegedly reported the girl missing after her pregnancy became evident, an action investigators believe was intended to conceal the trafficking and abuse.

The victim told Police that she was sexually assaulted by a bodaboda rider in Budaka town and Mugiti village in Kamonkoli town council in October 2025. Police are now hunting for the rider, as well as the suspect’s mother, who allegedly harboured the minor.

The girl has since been placed under protective custody at Mbale Children’s Rescue Home, as detectives prepare to travel to Kisoro to establish how she left Nakivale refugee settlement and to identify additional accomplices.

Negesa remains in custody and is expected to be transferred to Budaka Police Station as investigations continue.