Police dismantle suspected phone theft network in Lira
The suspects have been identified as: Joshua Emuna, 15; Gerald Acal, a male juvenile; and Bashir Ocen, who is suspected to be the man behind buying stolen phones and tampering with their identities before reselling them.
According to police, detectives arrested Emuna and Acal on July 14. During interrogation, the two allegedly led investigators to Ocen, whom police describe as the suspected receiver of stolen mobile phones.
LIRA - Police have intensified the crackdown on mobile phone theft syndicates, arresting three suspects in Lira City and recovering dozens of suspected stolen mobile phones in an operation that investigators said has exposed the critical role played by receivers of stolen property in fuelling street crime.
The suspects have been identified as: Joshua Emuna, 15; Gerald Acal, a male juvenile; and Bashir Ocen, who is suspected to be the man behind buying stolen phones and tampering with their identities before reselling them.
The arrests stemmed from investigations into robberies in Lira City. In one of the incidents, a woman was attacked by a group of unidentified young men while returning from her garden.
The assailants reportedly robbed her of a mobile phone and an unspecified amount of cash before fleeing.
According to police, detectives arrested Emuna and Acal on July 14. During interrogation, the two allegedly led investigators to Ocen, whom police describe as the suspected receiver of stolen mobile phones.
While addressing a press conference at Police Headquarters in Naguru, Kampala today morning (July 20), Police spokesperson Rusoke Kituuma said the operation highlights a growing trend in which traders dealing in stolen phones have become an integral part of organised criminal networks.
“The most dangerous group is not necessarily the phone snatchers, but those who buy the stolen phones. They have devised technological means of erasing the identity of these phones,” Kituuma said.
He explained that police investigations have established that some mobile phone dealers knowingly purchase stolen devices before altering or deleting their unique identifiers, making it difficult for investigators to trace them back to their rightful owners.
“The real snatching may be done by street ruffians, but there is somebody deliberately waiting in an arcade to dismantle the identity of the phone. These people have become an extension of the thieves,” Kituuma said.
He warned that security agencies would continue targeting both street criminals and those financing or facilitating the illicit trade in stolen phones.
Kituuma noted that the Lira operation is part of a nationwide campaign against mobile phone theft and the illegal market for stolen electronic devices.
The latest arrests come just days after Kampala Metropolitan Police conducted a major intelligence-led operation at Cooper Complex in Kampala’s Central Business District, where officers recovered more than 300 suspected stolen mobile phones and arrested 30 suspects.
According to Luke Owoyesigyire, the Deputy Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson, the raid at Cooper Complex followed intelligence reports indicating that the building had become a hub for individuals involved in the theft, purchase and sale of suspected stolen mobile phones.
“The recovered phones have been secured pending verification of ownership. Statements will be recorded from the suspects and other relevant witnesses, after which the suspects will be charged and prosecuted in accordance with the law where sufficient evidence exists,” Owoyesigyire said.
He said the operation forms part of the Police Force’s broader strategy to dismantle criminal networks involved in mobile phone theft and the illicit trade in stolen property.
Police have appealed to the public to avoid buying phones from unverified dealers or at suspiciously low prices, warning that doing so sustains organised crime and exposes buyers to prosecution for handling suspected stolen property.