Soroti child murder trial: Suspect accuses police of deleting CCTV footage
“They confiscated my phones and drove me to detain in Serere district. I can now only see two videos, yet there were many videos in my gallery,” a teary Ariokot told court. She alleged that videos, including footage of her wedding, had also been deleted from the phone.
Suzan Vivian Ariokot, one of six suspects facing trial for Apio’s murder broke down while in the dock, accusing Police of deleting CCTV footage from her mobile phone that she intended to present as part of her defence evidence (Credit: Godfrey Ojore)
SOROTI - A suspect in the murder of five-year-old Joan Faith Apio has accused police of deleting CCTV footage from her mobile phone that she intended to present as part of her defence evidence.
Suzan Vivian Ariokot, one of six suspects facing trial for Apio’s murder, made the claim on Monday, August 10, 2026, as the accused returned to Soroti High Court to present CCTV footage they had earlier indicated would support their defence.
Ariokot, who is jointly charged with her husband, Joseph Okedi, broke down in tears after learning that some of the footage she had hoped to rely on was missing from her phone.
“They confiscated my phones and drove me to detain in Serere district. I can now only see two videos, yet there were many videos in my gallery,” a teary Ariokot told court.
She alleged that videos, including footage of her wedding, had also been deleted from the phone.
The development came as the defence struggled to secure CCTV recordings from Soroti Regional Referral Hospital and Pride Bank, which the accused had earlier indicated were important to their cases.
Last week, Okedi told court that CCTV footage from the hospital’s outpatient department could help support his defence and his account of the circumstances surrounding Apio’s death.
According to Ajum, the hospital subsequently informed the defence that the requested footage was no longer available.
Meanwhile, CCTV footage from Pride Bank, which the defence also wants to use in support of Ariokot’s case, has not yet been obtained.
Ajum told court that bank officials in Soroti had advised the defence team to direct its request for the footage to the bank’s head office in Kampala.
The court has allowed the defence lawyer to travel to Kampala on Tuesday to pursue the footage. The case will resume on August 12, 2026, for the final hearing.
Ariokot, who is jointly charged with her husband, Joseph Okedi, broke down in tears after learning that some of the footage she had hoped to rely on was missing from her phone. (Credit: Godfrey Ojore)
The latest development comes days after several defence witnesses who had been lined up to testify declined to appear in court, citing fears of possible repercussions from members of the public.
Seven witnesses, including police officers, had been lined up by three of the accused to testify in their defence.
The witnesses reportedly told the defence lawyers that appearing in court to support the accused could expose them to public backlash, while some police officers allegedly feared that testifying could affect their jobs.
“Whereas we had informed court that we have witnesses for today, when we had an opportunity to interact with the witnesses last evening on Thursday (August 6), they expressed fear and are unable to give evidence,” Ajum told court last week.
Ariokot had listed two witnesses, while police detective Corporal John Bosco Obotol had four witnesses, all reportedly fellow police officers. Okedi had lined up one witness.
The other accused persons are James Edoket, a former headmaster of the nursery section at Jozan Nursery and Primary School; Osula Adongo, a former school matron; and Valentine Opio, a former school cook.
The six are accused of murdering Apio on February 5, 2025. They have all denied the charges.