Man collapses, as 78-year-old pins him on rape

CRIME| SEXUAL ABUSE

Tension engulfed the High Court in Kampala when a man accused of raping a 78-year-old woman collapsed in the court dock as he was being pinned of the crime.

Geoffrey Ssengendo,37, clad in a brown T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans appeared strong at the beginning of the trial but as Fayisi Nakanjako continued unleashing incriminating evidence against him, he touched his forehead and collapsed.

When he collapsed to the ground, three prison warders went to the dock and lifted him and later offered him a stool in the dock as they continued telling him to be patient.

However, the incident did not stop Nakabugo from continuing to pin him of the crime on Wednesday.

Ssengendo was a casual labourer, helping the old woman in keeping her animals and digging.

Nakanjako is a resident of Jagala in Gombe sub-county, Wakiso district.

Testifying before high court judge Jane Frances Abodo, Nakanjako narrated that on November 26, 2015 at about mid-night; the accused broke into her house and cautioned her against making an alarm before he raped her. Nakanjako gave her testimony on the guidance of state prosecutor, Jackie Akwii.

"While on my bed at mid-night, Ssengendo broke into my house and raped me yet I had given up on sex long time ago," she testified.

In a bid to escape from him, Nakanjako told court that she tried to dupe Ssengendo that she had AIDS but he (Ssengendo) continued to sexually assault her.

Nakanjako said she later escaped after the accused went looking for a basin after she deceived him that she wanted to ease herself.

"When I tried to run away from him, he pulled me and I fell down while shouting. At that point, one Kevina Nakabugo came to my rescue and Ssengendo varnished," she narrates.

Nakanjako said after the incident she felt like her genitals had been cut by a sharp object and a lot of pain in her private parts.

She further testified that she reported the case to Police and was later admitted to a health centre in Bwaise, a Kampala suburb, where she received medication.

During cross-examination, Nakajanko said it was dark; she was able to recognize Ssengendo by his voice.

Nakajanko also confirmed that after the incident, she spent four month being supported by her relatives without doing any work.

When pressed further by the defence lawyer Lydia Mwebazi, Nakajanko said she did not have memory lapses and is able to remember whatever happened that night.

At the end of her testimony, Nakanjako asked court to hand Ssengendo a life sentence, saying what he did was inhuman.

According to the medical report by Dr Male Mutumba, Ssengendo was found to be of normal mental state at the time of the incident.

Prosecution witness two, Nakabugo told court that she heard an alarm and someone knocking her door, saying "I am dying" and when she opened the door, only to see Nakanjako.

"When I asked her what had happened, she told me that Ssengendo had forced her into sex and she was feeling a lot of pain in her private part," she narrates. 

Nakabugo revealed that she offered her an ointment to relieve the pain and water to clean dirty clothes.

She revealed to court that before the incident, Ssengendo had rapped another mad woman in the same village.

After hearing from three prosecution witnesses, Abodo ruled that the accused had a case to answer and accordingly put him on defence.

The case was adjourned until December 4.

The trial is in line with the special court session launched by the Judiciary recently to handle Sexual and Gender Based Violence cases in the Country.


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