Soldier, three others charged with murder

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Four people, including a Ugandan soldier, have been charged with murder before the High Court in Kampala.

Prosecution alleges that the accused: Lt Isaac Lule, James Musinguzi, Lawrence Sekikongo and Seppi Gobeyima Waiswa and others still at large, with malice aforethought, murdered Sam Ssali. They allegedly committed the crime on March 20, 2023, at Bulamu deputy zone, Kasangati Town Council in Wakiso district.

According to the indictment, Ssali is the son of William Musisi, the complainant in the matter.

Assistant Registrar Samuel Twakiire, on May 8, 2025, adjourned the case to June 11, 2025, due to the absence of presiding judge Issa Sserukuma. The accused were represented by Zefania Zimbe, a lawyer.

(L-R) Seppi Gobeyima Waiswa, Lawrence Sekikongo, James Musinguzi and Lt Isaac Lule, charged with the murder of Sam Ssali, standing in the dock and High Court in Kampala. (Credit: Michael Odeng)

William Musisi, wearing a pink shirt (the father of the deceased), chatting with his daughters and relatives after a court case in Kampala. (Credit: Michael Odeng)

Court documents indicate that on March 20, 2023, Ssali was arrested by Waiswa (the watchman at Reverend Tusubira’s rentals), who suspected him of being a thief and took him to Lule inside the premises.

Lule then allegedly directed Musinguzi to get a chain and tie Ssali. Accordingly, Musinguzi got a chain together with a padlock from his house and tied Ssali’s hands from behind at the back with the help of Waiswa and Lule.

Later, Ssali was searched and found with a smartphone and sh80,000. He was then asked to prove ownership of the phone, which he did by inserting the correct password into the phone.

Shortly after, Ssali was pushed out of the gate of Tusubira’s rentals and placed outside in an incomplete building by Lule, Waiswa and part of the mob that had gathered.

However, at about 03:00 am, Ssali’s neighbour, Henry Kamoga and his wife, identified as Cissy, were woken up by people who instructed them to go and rescue Ssali because he was being killed.

When they reached the crime scene, Ssali had been beaten. When the defence secretary of the area also reached the scene and tasked Lule with revealing what Ssali had stolen, he failed to do so.

After the death of Ssali, the Police commenced investigations into the matter, which led to the arrest of the accused persons.

Upon interrogation, Ssali denied having committed the offence, while Musinguzi recorded a charge and caution statement in which he admitted that he tied the deceased’s hands with his chain and padlock on Lule’s orders and with the help of Waiswa.

Meanwhile, Waiswa admitted to beating the deceased with a three-metre-long stick locally known as “enkoni”. Waiswa further revealed that he and Lule detained the deceased person and kept him inside the premises, and later pushed him out of the gate.

The postmortem report indicates that the deceased’s body (upper limbs, back and buttocks) had bruises. The cause of death was haemorrhagic shock following blunt force trauma.