LDU arrested over staging road ambush ahead of Christmas

What you need to know:

  • There's panic in Karamoja sub region over the infiltration of guns into the region. Residents claim that there's trade of illegal guns along the Kenya and South Sudan borders.

Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) in Moroto District are holding a local defense unit personnel suspected of staging an ambush along Moroto-Soroti road. The suspect, whose identity has been withheld by the army for fear of jeopardising investigations, was picked up on Thursday.

He is believed to have ambushed a road user around Nadunget junction in Moroto on Wednesday night together with another person still at large. Capt Albert Arinaitwe, the UPDF 3rd Division spokesman, says the attackers had a gun, which is yet to be recovered. He revealed that the attackers robbed one person and attempted to rob a pickup truck and Noah.

"Our intelligence network is down and we are carrying out investigations. The community should remain calm and not fear that the warriors have come back. This is thuggery. These are robbers that were trying to pick property from these people. We are hunting for those on the run and we are coming for them," says Capt Arinaitwe.

Angella Lorot, a resident of Nadunget trading center says she's worried for her children and the entire family. Lorot appeals to security agencies to intensify their operations and ensure that wrong elements are isolated before they plunge the region into chaos.

There's panic in Karamoja sub region over the infiltration of guns into the region. Residents claim that there's trade of illegal guns along the Kenya and South Sudan borders. Brig. Richard Otto, the 3rd Division Commander, says they are tracing the source of the illegal guns.