Arua man beheads woman over witchcraft

Jul 03, 2019

The suspect said Candiru’s son Michael Alia was practicing witchcraft in the village.

Etrima blamed the murder on drug abuse and ignorance. Photo by Patrick Pariyo

Residents of Urima sub-county in Arua district were left in shock on Friday after a man identified as Geoffrey Aluma Angupala cut off the head of a 60-year-old woman, after failing to track her son, whom he accused of practicing witchcraft.

The deceased was identified as Filista Candiru. The suspect said Candiru's son Michael Alia was practicing witchcraft in the village. Alia had left the village out fear for his life and Angupala instead killed his mother.

Jessica Adroru, Candiru's daughter, said she left the garden to go home and prepare food, leaving her mother digging only to hear his brother's wife screaming that her mother-in-law had been attacked.

Lonzino Etrima, the Uriama sub-county chairperson blamed the murder on drug abuse and ignorance.

Etrima said this was the second time such brutal murder was being committed in the sub-county.

"On June, 20,  Joaquina Atiku Alia was killed by her son over a misunderstanding. Atiku was arrested and was remanded to Arua prison," he said. 

Police officers who visited the scene of crime handed over the body to the relatives for burial, pending investigations.

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