Government ordered to produce re-arrested Kaweesi murder suspects

What you need to know:

  • He asserts that as they tried to inquire who these men were and what their intentions were, several other plain clothed men armed with all kinds of guns pounced onto the car forcing it open and brutally dragging the applicants together with others out of the car and forcing them into a waiting van.
  • Mr Turyamusiima says that on the next day they were told Mubiru was dumped at Jinja road police while the applicants were left at Kireka Special Investigation Unit. Since then, they have not been produced in any courts of law.

Justice Henrietta Wolayo of the High Court Civil Division has ordered the Inspector General of Police to produce the three re-arrested murder suspects of the former police spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi dead or alive on Monday next week.

The order followed an application that was filed by the lawyers accusing the army for unjustly depriving suspects of their personal liberty in a manner contrary to article 23 (6) (a) of the constitution.

“The applicants have not been produced in any court or tribunal, this is a proper case where court should issue a habeas corpus ordering the persons holding the bodies of the applicants to produce them in court. The court accordingly issues a habeas corpus and the same shall return on September 30,” Justice Wolayo ruled.

The judge also noted that the applicants where re-arrested on September 11, 2019 and according to the affidavit of their lawyer Goefrey Turyamusiima, they has since not been allowed to see any family members, lawyers and doctors.

Through their lawyers of Wameli & Co.Advocates filed a habeas corpus in court after plain clothed armed men re-arreasted the three applicants on September 11, after they had been granted bail by the International Crimes Division.

A habeas corpus application is made in court seeking a person under detention to be brought before a judge or magistrate especially to secure that person's release unless lawful grounds are shown to justify their continued incarceration.

The respondents in this case include; the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Martin Okoth Ochola, commandant SID Kireka, Elly Womanya and Attorney General (AG).

The applicants; Yusuf Mugerwa alias Wilson, Jibril Kalyango alias Abu Aisha and Yusuf Siraje Nyanzi alias Jimmy Ssentamu were on September 11 released by court on bail pending the hearing of their case but were re-arrested except Yusuf Siraje Nyanzi alias Jimmy Ssentamu who managed to escape.

However Attorney General's representative informed court that he had contacted the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions who disclosed that the three applicants have pending charges which have to be sanctioned.

In a sworn affidavit filed in court, Mr Turyamusiima the lawyer of the three suspects said that their detention is illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and an infringement of their personal liberty.

Mr Turyamusiima said that the suspects are being held incommunicado by the servants, agents, or officers of the respondents and that they have not been produced in any court or charged in any competent court or their relatives, lawyers or even appear or take oath before any commissioner for oaths.

“On September 11, 2019 the applicants together with other suspects appeared before her Worship Easther Nasambu for signing of their release orders having been granted bail earlier by Justice Lydia Mugambe. After the applicants were handed their release orders and having no pending charges against them, the prison's authority handed them to us as their lawyers thus getting into Name Mubiru's vehicle being one of our colleague and a human rights activists," Mr Turyamusiima narrates in his affidavit.

He further narrates that as they drove out of the court premises several plain clothed muscular men approached the motor vehicle and ordered Mubiru to open the doors.

He asserts that as they tried to inquire who these men were and what their intentions were, several other plain clothed men armed with all kinds of guns pounced onto the car forcing it open and brutally dragging the applicants together with others out of the car and forcing them into a waiting van.

Mr Turyamusiima says that on the next day they were told Mubiru was dumped at Jinja road police while the applicants were left at Kireka Special Investigation Unit. Since then, they have not been produced in any courts of law.