Lawyer Kasango convicted for fraud

Kampala. High Court has quashed the acquittal of lawyer Bob Kasango by a lower court and convicted him for stealing more than Shs3 billion.
He received the money in question from the permanent secretary ministry of Lands on behalf of Tooro Queen Mother Best Kemigisa.

High Court Judge Elizabeth Kabanda ordered that the record of proceeding in the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Buganda Road be referred back to the magistrate to sentence Mr Kasango.
“In the result, the appeal is substantially allowed. The order of acquittal is set aside and substituted with a conviction on count two of uttering a false document contrary to Section 351 of the Penal Code Act and count 3 of stealing by agent,” Justice Kabanda ruled.
She criticised the lower court for relying on minor contradictions to acquit Mr Kasango, saying such contradictions do not negate the substantive prosecution evidence.

However, Justice Kabanda upheld the acquittal of Kasango on the charge of forgery. The conviction arose from an appeal by the prosecution which was dissatisfied with the trial magistrate’s court for misjudging the evidence on fraud.
The prosecution also accused the magistrate’s court of erring in law and fact and ignoring circumstantial evidence which pinned Mr Kasango on presentation of a false document with intent to defraud.
Buganda Road Magistrate’s Court last Friday acquitted Mr Kasango of charges of fraud against him by Tooro Queen Mother. Kasango was acquitted of three counts of forgery, uttering a false document and stealing by an agent.

Grade One Magistrate Simon Kintu ruled that there were glaring inconsistencies in the testimonies of the prosecution witnesses which could not sustain the charges against Mr Kasango.
However, Justice Kabanda said the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt to warrant a conviction against Kasango.
“With regard to the offence of stealing by agent, there is no dispute that the complainant instructed the respondent (Kasango) to recover monies from the government,” the judge said.

Justice Kabanda also said there were numerous inconsistencies in Mr Kasango’s purported payments towards purchase of a house for Ms Kemigisa in Munyonyo.
“In all the above, there is no linkage between the alleged money towards the purchase of the complainant’s house and money the respondent received on behalf of the complainant from government. Therefore, the respondent’s claim that he paid for the complainant’s purchased house at Munyonyo using complainant’s money from the government is lies that cannot be believed,” Justice Kabanda said.

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