KAMPALA, Uganda — At least 12 suspects, including current and former senior Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) officers, have been interrogated over high-profile assassinations after reports emerged that they allegedly concealed vital intelligence regarding the attacks.
The ongoing probe initially focused on allegations that the officers submitted fabricated intelligence about terror attacks to justify operational budgets. However, sources familiar with the investigation say interrogators have since widened their focus to include the 2021 attempted assassination of Works Minister Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala and the 2017 murder of former Police spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi.
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Senior officers detained include Maj. Gen. James Birungi, the former head of the Defence Intelligence and Security (DIS); Col. Peter Ahimbisibwe, the DIS director of counter-terrorism; and Lt. Col. Ephraim Byaruhanga, the DIS director of special operations. They were also questioned over the 2016 killing of Maj. Muhammad Kiggundu.
The officers are suspected of covering up terrorist cells from which the attackers emerged, allegedly concealing crucial intelligence provided by other security agencies and arrested suspects.
Ballistic Links Concealed
The current investigation stems from mounting evidence linking the three separate attacks, all of which were carried out by assailants riding motorcycles (bodabodas) who security officials identified as Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) operatives.
The source said a gun recovered during the investigation into the June 1, 2021, attack on Katumba was forensically matched to the 2017 assassination of Kaweesi and the 2016 killing of Kiggundu. Katumba survived the attack, but his daughter, Brenda Nantongo, was killed. Kaweesi was killed alongside his bodyguard, Cpl. Kenneth Erau, and driver, Geoffrey Mambewa.
Sources confirmed that the ballistic link was deliberately kept from most investigators, suggesting possible internal collusion. The Katumba attackers also reportedly possessed the pistol belonging to Kaweesi’s slain bodyguard.
Furthermore, when Hussein Lubwama, an alleged shooter in the Katumba attack, was arrested in 2021, his interrogation produced the names of two wanted ADF suspects. The reaction of DIS officers present—who reportedly reacted with shock—lent credence to the suspicion that the officers had prior knowledge of the named operatives but failed to disclose it. Lubwama later died in custody under unexplained circumstances.
High-Level Inquiry
The senior officers’ arrests and interrogations are part of a high-level inquiry established by Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba and headed by Deputy Chief of Defence Forces Lt. Gen. Samuel Okiding.
The inquiry board includes top officials from various security organs, including Inspector General of Police Abas Byakagaba and the heads of the Internal Security Organisation (ISO) and the External Security Organisation (ESO).
The board’s initial mandate was to establish whether security alerts were fabricated to justify operational budgets. The interrogations have also stretched to include diversion of operational funds and alleged trading of asylum seekers for cash.
In the aftermath of Kaweesi’s 2017 murder, a separate ISO investigation resulted in the arrest and charging of several senior army and police officers before the General Court Martial on charges including failure to protect war materials. However, a subsequent joint investigation review found no evidence to pin those officers on the murder itself. Adding to the ongoing mystery, an FBI laboratory report on Kaweesi’s murder, completed in June 2017, also went missing without its findings being shared with Ugandan investigators.
Additional reporting by New Vision
