Three jailed members of the Boda Boda 2010 association have regained their freedom after being acquitted by the General Court Martial. They are Jonathan Kayondo, Hassan Ssengooba and Sande Ssemwogerere.
The General Court Martial Chairman Lt General Andrew Gutti acquitted the trio this morning saying prosecution had failed to present evidence showing that they were at the Boda Boda 2010 Association offices in Nateete during a UPDF operation that led to the recovery of illegal firearms, military uniforms and headgear.
However, General Gutti ruled that Abdullah Kitatta, the patron of Boda Boda 2010 Association, Ibrahim Sekajja and Sowali Ngobi have a case to answer for unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition.
He noted that Ngobi who is said to be a police officer, didn’t have a warrant card showing that he was armed at the time of his arrest at Vine Hotel Wakaliga.
Sekajja is also required to defend himself since he was in vehicle registration number UAK 135B with Kitatta where an SMG gun was recovered from with 50 rounds of ammunition. Kitatta will also have to defend himself individually on the illegal possession of a golden pistol, which was found in his Hotel Room.
Other suspects are expected to defend themselves because they were found in the Boda Boda 2010 offices in Nateete during the arrests. These include Joel Kibirige, Fred Bwanika, Amon Twinomujuni, John Ssebandeke, Hassan Ssebatta, Matia Senfuka and Hussein Mugema.
Shaban Sanywa, the suspect’s lawyer asked court to direct Vine hotel management to avail him with the video footage of the arrest of the suspects, a request Gutti declined to grant.
“A hotel is a public facility, I cannot interfere. If you are sick, you go and look for a doctor, and now it’s you who is sick. Go and look for treatment”, Gutti said with laughter.
He tasked Sanywa to use any means to secure the video footage, saying his court cannot give him an order to get the footage. Sanywa pleaded with Gutti to grant him the orders, saying he had asked the Vine Hotel Management to give them the footage in vain.
The hotel reportedly said they would only do so if the lawyer presents a court order. Earlier on, Sanywa had told URN that the defense would rely on the CCTV footage in case his clients have a case to answer.
The accused persons were arrested from various places in Rubaga division between January, 19th and 21st 2018 for unlawful possession of unlawful weapons and military stores.
Prosecution presented four witnesses to testify against the suspects. They included Private Richard Kasaija, one of the nine operatives involved in the operation to arrest the suspects, Corporal Richard Wanyama, a CMI detective attached to Directorate of Counter Terrorism, Major David Agaba, the former Operations Commander at CMI and Corporal Alex Baguma, the one who was driving the vehicle that picked up suspects.
The matter shall return to Court on January, 7, 2019.