Baby thief disrupts church service
A Sunday service at St. Joseph Church in Kinoni town, Masaka district ended prematurely when a three-month-old baby was stolen from her mother.
By Dismus Buregyeya
A Sunday service at St. Joseph Church in Kinoni town, Masaka district ended prematurely when a three-month-old baby was stolen from her mother.
The incident took place at about 10:00am. A 12-year-old girl offered to help the baby’s mother, Harriet Namagembe, take the sweating baby outside for fresh air.
Namagembe, a resident of Ssekke in Kinoni, later raised an alarm in the church after discovering that the girl was not outside the Church.
Christians abandoned their prayers and mounted a search for the baby around Kinoni. They also made announcements over the local community radio. The southern Police commander, Andrew Sorowen, said the Police and the locals rushed to the taxi and bus parks in Kinoni and Masaka town. A passenger identified as Victoria Nalongo, 33, was found with the baby at Masaka Bus Park at around 3:00pm.
Nalongo was arrested and handed over to the Masaka Central Police Station. She said she was going to Bazirandeku village in Luweero district.
Nalongo, who owns a salon in Kinoni, was found in the possession of anti-retroviral drugs and medical documents showing that she was infected with HIV.
The Police said she was with another one-year-old boy whom she said was her son. They suspect that Nalongo was taking the baby for a ritual sacrifice.
A Sunday service at St. Joseph Church in Kinoni town, Masaka district ended prematurely when a three-month-old baby was stolen from her mother.
The incident took place at about 10:00am. A 12-year-old girl offered to help the baby’s mother, Harriet Namagembe, take the sweating baby outside for fresh air.
Namagembe, a resident of Ssekke in Kinoni, later raised an alarm in the church after discovering that the girl was not outside the Church.
Christians abandoned their prayers and mounted a search for the baby around Kinoni. They also made announcements over the local community radio. The southern Police commander, Andrew Sorowen, said the Police and the locals rushed to the taxi and bus parks in Kinoni and Masaka town. A passenger identified as Victoria Nalongo, 33, was found with the baby at Masaka Bus Park at around 3:00pm.
Nalongo was arrested and handed over to the Masaka Central Police Station. She said she was going to Bazirandeku village in Luweero district.
Nalongo, who owns a salon in Kinoni, was found in the possession of anti-retroviral drugs and medical documents showing that she was infected with HIV.
The Police said she was with another one-year-old boy whom she said was her son. They suspect that Nalongo was taking the baby for a ritual sacrifice.