Rwandans, Burundians among 30 netted over illegal entry

Mar 29, 2017

The Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson, Emilian Kayima said that the suspects included 17 Rwandans, 12 Burundians and one Nigerian married to a Rwandan.

Police are holding 30 foreign nationals who entered the country without proper travel documents.

The Police suspect them to have entered the country with criminal intentions or to be involved in human trafficking.

The Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson, Emilian Kayima said that the suspects included 17 Rwandans, 12 Burundians and one Nigerian married to a Rwandan.

He said the suspects who were still being held at Old Kampala Police Station were arrested at about 10.00AM on Monday, March 27 at Qualicel Bus Terminal in downtown Kampala allegedly going to Kajjansi along Entebbe Road.

Kayima said 'vigilant' locals and the bus terminal managers became suspicious of the group. He said when they interrogated them; they gave uncoordinated information about where they came from and their final destination.

They claimed to be going to attend a wedding at Kajjansi but did not know the grooms, which forced people to tip the Police.

Police officers from a Police post near Blue Room along Namirembe Road arrived at the scene and intercepted them from boarding taxis. They were later dragged to Old Kampala Police Station.

Kayima said that the suspects first refused to disclose their details but later opened up and informed police detectives that they had been coordinated by a Ugandan working in Kampala.

He said the police had started looking for the coordinator suspecting that it could be a case of 'human trafficking' or fraud.

"We suspect that their coordinator could have obtained money from these individuals after promising to connect them to the United States of Canada for lucrative jobs or intentionally defrauded them," Kayima explained.

He declined to disclose the details of the coordinator fearing it could aid hiss escape.

The police have also contacted the Rwandan and Burundian embassy officials who have joined in the screening of the suspects with a possibility of repatriating them or investigating them for possible prosecution in case they are found to have committed crimes in their countries of origin.

Residents in Kampala have been cautious about people they are not sure of after several incidents of shootings involving prominent figures, including the murder of Assistant Inspector General of Police, Andrew Felix Kaweesi who was recently gunned down together with his body guard and driver

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