Police storm Mak chapel, stop Tegu murder video

Police detectives view the CCTV footage inside the control room of St Augustine chapel at Makerere University yesterday. PHOTO/MICHAEL KAKUMIRIZI

Police have escalated the controversy about the killing of Emmanuel Tegu, a third-year veterinary student of Makerere University, when they stopped a church near the crime scene from showing a footage about what happened on the fateful night.

Tegu was fatally assaulted at night near LumumbaHall on June 27. Police blame a mob for the murder but the family and local leaders implicate security personnel.

Tegu was allegedly beaten near St Augustine and St Francis chapels, which are close to each other at the university main campus.

Yesterday, officials of St Augustine Chapel had planned to run a CCTV footage about the incident but police stormed the church’s CCTV control room and stopped the video.

The chaplain, Rev Fr Josephat Ddungu, had invited journalists at 11am to take them through the video footage but police arrived in time to thwart the plan.

“We are tired of the public blaming us for not showing the video. For us we are going to show it,” Fr Ddungu told the media.

However, the head of Criminal Investigation Department at Makerere University Police Station, Ms Priscilla Amoko, promptly stopped him.

“You can only view the recordings after clearance from the headquarters,” Ms Amoko ordered Fr Ddungu.

Police stayed in the church’s CCTV control room from about 10:50am to about 3pm. At least six detectives occupied the CCTV control room and the curious journalists were kept metres away from the entrance.

When journalists insisted on accessing the footage as the church had promised, Ms Amoko, who appeared overwhelmed, called for reinforcements.

More police personnel, led by Wandegeya Division Police Commander Samuel Odongo, arrived shortly after and took positions around the chapel.

Immediately, Mr Odongo entered a closed meeting with Fr Ddungu and shortly later came out and ruled: “You cannot view the video without higher authority.”

Fr Ddungu told journalists he could not defy police but said the officers had taken a copy of the video.
“We have retained the master copy and when they allow us, we will show the public what happened,” he said.

Seen footage
A detective, who claimed to have watched the CCTV recording, said the Tegu incident started about 9pm and that two policemen are seen pursuing him down towards Centenary Bank branch nearby.

The detective said as they pursued Tegu, they were joined by three private security guards, who began assaulting Tegu.

The detective said Tegu is then seen falling to the ground unconscious and he is dumped in the grass. This is when a distress call was made to the police patrol vehicle that arrives later to take him to Mulago hospital, where he died last weekend.

Police no response
Police spokesperson Fred Enanga, who we contacted early in the day yesterday about the video saga, provided no response to our WhatsApp messages, although the messages indicated that they were opened.

After Tegu succumbed to the injuries at the weekend, the deputy Inspector General of Police, Maj Gen Sabiiti Muzeeyi, convened an abrupt meeting with Kampala Metropolitan police commanders and demanded the progress on the investigations.

The police had not arrested any suspect. Maj Gen Muzeeyi cut short the meeting and ordered them to return to the scene of crime and find the suspects.

By the following day, police said they had arrested at least seven suspects, whom local leaders have claimed these were innocent residents who were simply randomly rounded up, some from their houses.
Tegu hailed from Bukedea District and was buried on Sunday.