Youth gang terrorises Lira Town

A gang of youngsters has been terrorising residents in Lira Town causing panic in the central business area of Lango Sub-region.
Intelligence reports indicate that children as young as eight years have been recruited into the gang that “operates like dogs”.
The group, armed with razor blades, machetes, iron bars, and hammers, according to the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), sleep from 5am to 6pm.

As night falls, they begin waylaying unsuspecting victims and robbing them of their valuables.
The most unsecure villages are Ober Kampala and Ober Entebbe, all in Ober Parish, Adyel Division. In these villages, women are often waylaid in the evening and sexually abused, according to security forces.

Lt Hassan Ahmed Kato, the 5th Division army spokesperson, said last week, five boda boda riders were attacked and robbed of their motorcycles in Ober Parish.
“The group use young boys and ladies. An innocent beautiful young girl stops you and requests for a ride.
“She jumps on the boda boda and a few minutes later, she tells you to stop. As you park the motorcycle, two guys then pounce on you from behind,” Lt Kato said at the weekend.
He said the attackers either hit you with a hammer or an iron bar. “Those who have been robbed say once you are lucky to escape alive, you won’t even think of buying another motorcycle,” the army spokesperson added.

Intervention
Because of the public outcry, UPDF soldiers have started conducting night patrols.
On Wednesday, eight people suspected to be behind the recent attacks were arrested.
“The youngest suspect was eight years old. We got him with a razor blade and then a master key. Another was 13 years old. But the rest were 18 years and above. They were roaming in a group of about 20, but the rest ran away,” Lt Kato said.
“So, we decided to join hands with the police and soon we shall crack them down.”

The LC1 defence secretary of Ober Entebbe Village, Mr Oscar Etam, said the gangsters are from within the community.
“Whenever we arrest them [gangsters], some are set free by police and that is why fighting crime has been difficult,” he said.
Ms Sarah Omara, a resident of Ober Entebbe, said many women have been raped or robbed off their mobile phones and money. “We feel very insecure these days,” she said.
Mr Morris Chris Ongom, the executive director of Global Forum for Development, a non-governmental organisation, attributed the increased crime rate in Lira to poor parenting.

“Parenting is becoming a challenge, more young people are looking for ways to survive through criminality. Leaders of our town are not finding alternative means to nurture the young people,” he said.
Recently, the north Kyoga regional police spokesperson, Mr David Ongom Mudong, said police would develop a new strategy to curb the crime in Lango Sub-region.
“We are trying to design a very tough measure to curb this crime and this time round we are going to take serious action,” he said.
But six months down the road, the situation has remained the same.

Crime report
The 2018 Annual Crime and Traffic Safety Report released yesterday shows that police recorded the highest cases in Lira District, a total of 6,726.
Lira was followed by Mbarara Municipality with 5,262 cases and Arua with 4,961.
Both Arua and Mbarara, which are currently municipalities, have been named by government for elevation to cities starting next year.
Ntungamo District and Katwe in Makindye Division, Kampala, came fourth and fifth with 4,731 cases and 3943 cases, respectively.

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