Serial robber gets 100 years

PIC: Edward Lugolobi, Musa Kalule and Sulaiman Nabambula were arrested in a police operation early last year.(File photo)

 A serial robber has been sentenced to 100 years in prison after court convicted him of robbing and murdering a special hire taxi driver in Kampala.

On Thursday, a guilty verdict was passed against Musa Kalule, 33, for the murder of John Bosco Zziwa. The deceased was robbed and his car sold to a trader in the DR Congo in 2013.

Justice Moses Kazibwe, sitting at the High Court in Kampala, penalised Kalule and condemned him to a 50-year custodial sentence for murder and another 50 years for aggravated robbery.

However, the sentences will be served concurrently.
The judge said prosecution, led by Jonathan Muwaganya, had adduced overwhelming evidence and convinced court to the required standard of beyond reasonable doubt.

"The testimonies from the prosecution witnesses are proof that the convict murdered his victim with malice aforethought," Justice Kazibwe ruled. Court records show that Kalule, also known by the pseudo name Sam Yenga Amanga Blaise, has a streak of lying on oath.

Witness testimonies pointed that prior to Zziwa's murder, Kalule had gained infamy for several car thefts and had been blacklisted for a two-time prison break.

Kalule bit off wife's nose
Kalule's notoriety was exhibited when court was informed that he had bitten off his wife's nose as she paid him a visit at Luzira prison. He claimed she was having an extra-marital affair. There is a pending case at Luzira Magistrates Court.

How Zziwa met his death
According to the indictment by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Kalule lured Zziwa into a trap when he enlisted his services on February 2, 2013. Zziwa was later slain after intense torture by his captor, who used a hammer, rope and iron bar.

His body was dumped in a swampy sugarcane plantation in Matugga, Wakiso district. Subsequently, the DR Congo national aided the police in tracing Kalule when the vehicle was recovered on March 17, 2014 in Arua town. The car had DR Congo licence plates, but its original Uganda licence plate number was emblazoned on the side mirrors and windscreen.