State seeks access to phones of Besigye and Lutale

___________________

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) has applied to court seeking permission to access the phones of four-time presidential candidate Dr. Kizza Besigye and his aide, Hajj Obeid Lutale, who are facing treason charges.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the devices may have been used in the commission of the offences and could contain relevant data and information crucial to the case.

Nakawa Chief Magistrate Esther Nyadoi was expected to hear the application on Friday (March 7) but the accused’s lawyers, led by Erias Lukwago, requested a postponement due to late service.

The legal team, which also includes Fred Mpanga, Samuel Muyizzi, and Kato Tumusiime, will now have until March 14 to prepare.

The ODPP, represented by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Thomas Jatiko, Chief State Attorney Richard Birivumbuka, and State Attorney Eunice Baine, also seeks an order to retain the electronic devices and their data for use as evidence.

“Forensic analysis of the devices is necessary to determine the exact nature and evidential value of the data they contain,” said Birivumbuka.

He told court that investigations into the accused’s treason case are ongoing, adding that the law gives them six months to complete investigations in a matter.

Birivumbuka made the statement after defence lawyers pressed the prosecution to provide a timeline for completing the investigations.

The magistrate directed the state to finalize its investigations, enabling Besigye’s lawyers to proceed with their arguments in a competent court, as the current court lacks jurisdiction to hear the case.

The case  

Besigye and Lutale face charges of treason and misprision of treason together with Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) officer, Captain Denis Oola, attached to the armoured brigade.

It is alleged that Besigye, Lutale, Oola and others still at large between 2023 and November 2024 in various places/countries, including Geneva in Switzerland, Athens in Greece, Nairobi in Kenya and Kampala in Uganda, contrived a plot act by force of arms to overturn the Government of Uganda as by law established and expressed or declared such plot, act or matter by utterances and overt acts.

According to the charge sheet, the accused, in the same countries, knowing that another person intended to commit treason did not give information thereof with all reasonable dispatch to the minister, an administrative officer, a magistrate or an officer in charge of a police station or use all reasonable endeavours to prevent the commission of treason.

Particulars of overt acts

Prosecution alleges that the accused persons travelled to various countries, including Switzerland, Greece and Kenya, for the purposes of attending meetings to further the plot to overturn the Government of Uganda.

Court documents indicate that the accused persons attended meetings with various individuals both physically and virtually in various places including Geneva in Switzerland, Athens in Greece, Nairobi in Kenya and Kampala in furtherance of the plot to overturn the Government of Uganda.

According to the court documents, the accused persons allegedly provided logistical support and organized several Ugandan citizens to travel to Kisumu in Kenya for the purpose of receiving training in various military and intelligence-gathering techniques.

It is purported that the trio solicited military, financial and other logistical support to overturn the Ugandan government.