KAMPALA — Kampala city businessman Moses Kalungi Kirumira commonly known as Bill Gates has regained his properties including two vehicles, initially confiscated by CID detectives in 2020.
The businessman was in 2020 arraigned in court and charged for having illegally broken into a shop run by Vas garage bet Limited found at Kalungi Plaza in Kampala and reportedly stole items valued at 12,000 dollars (42.9 million shillings).
The tenant Vasgaragbet Limited reportedly had an accumulation of rent arrears.
According to the prosecution, the stolen items included 23 Hisense flat Television screens, compressor air conditioners, keys to a safe, a generator, six air conditioner remotes and control devices.
However, the Buganda Road Grade One Magistrate Gladys Kamasanyu ruled that the accused Kalungi was charged basing on a bundle of lies since the investigating officer didn’t investigate anything but reportedly acted on emotions narrated to him by the complainant whose statement he didn’t even record.
She added that the evidence before court was that the investigating officer arrested the businessman for having received a WhatsApp message from his father directing him to take the property from the rented premises but never went ahead to investigate further, not even visiting the scene of crime.
According to Kamasanyu, what was adduced as evidence was therefore a bundle of lies against the accused and there was no case of theft proven against them.
Before taking leave of the case, Kamasanyu said she was disappointed by both parties involved in prosecuting and charging the accused considering the kind of evidence that was brought since the investigating officer failed to carry out investigations which was a total abuse of court in her view.
Kamasanyu said she was disappointed by the prosecution and investigating institutions to spend government resources on malicious prosecution of innocent citizens saying that it had become rampant in her court.
According to Kamasanyu, such resources should have been used to attend to genuine cases and cases of malicious prosecution have resulted into mob justice in communities. She warned the Prosecution to do much better next time.
The dismissal of these charges comes a few days after the same court dismissed charges of sectarianism against Kalungi. The businessman had been accused of telling the Assistant Commissioner of Police Francis Francis Olugu that he is an Acholi whose time in office is over and that is why President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni allegedly fought them for fighting Baganda.
According to the charge sheet, the prosecution quotes Kalungi for having allegedly told Olugu that “You Commissioner, you are not even a Ugandan that is why President Museveni fought you and you are not supposed to be in this country.”
It is also alleged that Kalungi told Olugu that, “You are an Acholi, this is the end of your time in office. You Acholi, that is why Museveni fought you and you are fighting Baganda.”
Speaking to journalists on Thursday, Kalungi said that the charges were aimed at making him lose his political seat as the Mayor for Makindye Division adding that he is a manufacturer, farmer and owner of 16 Commercial Buildings in this City and there is no way how he could have stolen a tenant’s property.
