Panic as Court Martial suspects disappear

By David Lumu

“Where are they?” This was the question that a perplexed Brigadier Moses Diba Ssentongo, the chairman of the General Court martial put to lawyers.

But even the lawyers, State prosecutor Captain Fredrick Kagwamu and defence lawyer Captain Nasser Drago could not give answers.

“I took it for granted that they are in incarceration,” Drago said.

Hebert Owesiima, Joseph Opio, Charles Ekudu, Richard Sekarembe, who were charged before the court martial for unlawful possession of fire arms, are the missing suspects.

Ssentongo was surprised to learn that the suspects could not be traced yet court wanted to hear their cases.  Ssentongo said that it was “unbelievable” that suspects could “disappear” without being detected by authorities.

“Let me hope they will be tracked down,” he said.

Drago said that one of the suspects last appeared in court on March 1, 2012 and asked court to ascertain the whereabouts of the four suspects from the Kigo prison warden.

On his part, Kagwamu said that the State cannot also tell where the suspects are and that it cannot be proved that they were released on bail.

When Ssentongo asked the Kigo warden, Francis Okot to explain, he said that he doesn’t have any record of the suspects.

Ssentongo has since issued an arrest warrant for the four and also tasked their lawyer Drago to give a report on the elusive suspects by June 2.

Meanwhile, two suspects, Mathias Lugira, a Rwandese, and a Ugandan, Wilberforce Ssenabulya have pleaded guilty for unlawfully possessing fire arms. In May 2010, the two robbed the gun from Lt. Julius Maya.

Court delivers the sentence today.

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