Four police officers from Kabalagala Police Station have been dismissed with disgrace and charged with aggravated robbery after allegedly turning against a couple carrying USD 30,000.
The victims, a Kenyan businessman, and his associates, were seeking to exchange the substantial sum into Ugandan shillings for the purchase of a lorry.
The implicated officers, identified as DC Amomg Phiona (28), DC Angula Isaac (27), DC Baluku Shafik (26), and DC Galenda Bernard, all stationed at Kabalagala Police Division, are now facing serious charges following the incident on January 17, 2024.
According to Fred Enanga, the victim, Muhammad Olad Abdirahman,37, checked into Royal View Hotel Buziga, accompanied by two individuals purportedly assisting him in securing the best exchange rate for the substantial USD 30,000 in their possession.
Enanga says the hotel manager, currently on the run was specifically approached by the victim to help him secure the deal, however, upon learning of the substantial amount, the manager connived with one Okello, posing as a foreign exchange broker and tipped off a Police Constable Among Phiona, who then informed her three colleagues.
The officers, and the two civilians devised a plan to arrest the victims.
He explains that at at around 4 pm, the victims were reportedly forcefully taken on a motorcycle through Kabalagala barracks road to another hotel garden, robbed of all their cash and abandoned.
Enanga further reveals that Olad sought assistance from a Kenyan friend who helped them report the incident that led to the arrest of the police officers. He says they face disciplinary action and consequent dismissal from police.
He says police conducted a search of the officer’s residences and uncovered additional dollars, which were duly documented as evidence.
Police are now tracking down Okello and the hotel manager, both accused of being accomplices in the crime, to ensure justice is served.