Arsenal fan killed in Sheema over match against Man Utd

The government has tasked security officers who launched a manhunt after a Manchester United fan allegedly killed an Arsenal FC supporter to spare no effort in a bid to apprehend the suspect.

Sheema District was left in a state of shock on Sunday after the Manchester United supporter allegedly stabbed Jackson Aineruhanga, 22, after Arsenal defeated his team 3-1.

“We condemn that kind of violence,” Dr Chris Baryomunsi, the ICT and National Guidance minister, told Daily Monitor by telephone yesterday, adding, “While people can support football teams, it should not degenerate into causing that kind of violence, which results in death… the person who caused the death should be brought to book in accordance with the law.” 

Aineruhanga sat next to the suspect in a video hall to watch the football match at Rwanyinakahire Trading Centre in Rwamujojo Ward, Sheema Municipality. 

For years on end, football fans have flocked to the video hall, which is less than 10km from Kabwohe Town. 

Events after matches usually pass by with little or no incidents. Fans usually banter with each other before retreating to their next destinations. 

However, on Sunday, after hailing Gabriel Jesus’s goal that put a cherry on the cake for Arsenal, sources said Aineruhanga had no idea what awaited him post-match. 

“While watching the game inside the video hall, my brother and the suspect who supported Manchester United kept exchanging rants about the game and I thought it was going to stop at the end of the match,” Mr Owen Atwijukire, the elder brother of the deceased, said.

Mr Nelson Nuwagaba, the chairperson of Rwanyinakahire Cell, told this publication that the grudge the suspect bore against Aineruhanga came to a head when “the suspect… chas[ed] the deceased until a point when he pierced him with a sharp object.”

When a distress call was made, Mr Atwijukire rushed to the scene and found his younger brother “lying in a pool of blood near a building.” 

Mr Atwijukire, who told this newspaper that his fallen brother was not bad-mannered, said he reported the case to Kyabandara Police Post.

Mr Marcial Tumusiime, the spokesperson of Greater Bushenyi Regional Police, confirmed that a team of police officers is currently “doing groundwork in conjunction with the area local council chairperson.”

Aineruhanga dropped out of school in Senior Two after the outbreak of Covid-19, which resulted in a number of restrictions such as lockdowns and the closure of schools for close to two years. 

At the time of his death, he used to make a living out of selling chapatti at the trading centre. His elder brother fondly remembers the last moments shared after both Arsenal and Manchester United went into the break. At half time, the teams were at 1-1.

“…we were together in a video hall, and though he used to drink alcohol, he asked me to buy him a soda. It was unusual of him to ask for a soda, so I gave him Shs1,000 for a soda.  I think he was saying goodbye to me,” Mr Atwijukire said.

Mr Atwijukire, a Manchester United supporter, left the trading centre immediately after the curtain was brought down on the absorbing match. He remembers leaving his brother toasting to the win with his fellow Arsenal fans.

“I thought it was going to stop at the end of the match, but I think the suspect was very angry. When I reached home, one of the residents called to tell me that my brother had been killed at around 9:30pm,” he said. The match ended after 8pm.

The police revealed that the alleged murder weapon was a sharpened stick used to roast meat. 
“People saw the suspect chasing the deceased and thought they were joking until they saw something that started as a joke turn into this unfortunate incident,” local leader Nuwagaba said.

Govt speaks out
Minister Baryomunsi accused the owner of the video hall, saying he or she did not provide “adequate security for his clients who were there”. 

He added: “The owner should record a statement with police to help in the investigations because he [or she] should also be able to account for what happened on that fateful day.” 
The minister also advised “young people [to] invest their energy in working hard in order for them to create wealth and prosperity and not just waste time watching football and getting crazy over things like watching football”.

Minister Baryomunsi said there is a need for the government to also strengthen the laws that govern betting and areas where people go to spend their leisure time.

“We have the national regulatory framework with respect to betting, but I think this needs to be reinforced with the local and the lower local governments by putting in place bylaws and ordinances to regulate those bibandas  (video halls) and other places where people go for entertainment to strengthen that regulatory framework,” he said.

The deceased was buried yesterday at his parents’ home in Rwanyinakahire Cell.
“I was here [at home] when someone called me after 9pm on Sunday and told me that my son had been killed. I went there and found his body lying lifeless in a pool of blood. I couldn’t imagine what I saw. I will not speak more about the suspect… I think it was God’s plan,” Mr Godfrey Nkundwaruhanga, the father of the deceased, told mourners yesterday.

Mr Nkundwaruhanga said it was a bitter pill to swallow as his son was as fit as a fiddle. 
“My son never got sick,” he said.

Past incidents
On Sunday, a man, 42, assaulted ex- Manchester United captain Roy Keane during Arsenal’s 3-1 win over Manchester United.  Footage shows that Mr Keane and Mr Micah Richards, both Sky Sports pundits, were involved in an altercation with the man, who was a member of the public.
 Sky Sports said Mr Richards was ‘‘acting to defuse a situation’’. ‘‘Police are investigating an incident at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, during which a man was assaulted,’’ the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
It added: ‘‘On Monday, a man, 42, was arrested on suspicion of assault and is currently in police custody. Enquiries are ongoing.
Several incidents of violence between rival fans of Premier League clubs have been reported in Uganda. 
Ugandan league football has also been synonymous with violence, especially in games involving traditional giants – SC Villa and Express – through the 80s, 90s and early 2000s.
There are still pockets of violence as witnessed in Jinja during the league last season and in the game between SC Villa and Wakiso Giants despite efforts to stem the vice with fines and stadium bans. 
 
Biggest incidents of violence in Ugandan football 
 •Express vs SC Villa (May 10, 1997). This explosive match played at Wankulukuku Stadium ended in a one all draw. 

However, police fired in the air to disperse the rioting Express fans who pelted the SC Villa bench and police with stones.  

This was after Express team manager Kassim Buyondo stormed the pitch disputing the decision to disallow his team’s goal.  Encouraged by the reaction of their team manager, Express fans pelted the referee with stones.

The match stopped for 30 minutes as police fired in air to disperse the irritated fans. The game resumed but after the final whistle fresh trouble started, forcing anti-riot police to yet again fire in the air.
•SC Villa vs Express (May 1985). At the time, Express FC had played 18 matches without conceeding a goal. As fate would have it, the Red Eagles’s 19th game was against bitter rivals, SC Villa.

It took SC Villa just five minutes to breach Express’s goal courtesy of Geoffrey Higenyi. 
Express equalised through Phillip Musoke in the 42nd minute. Shouts of discontent echoed around Nakivubo Stadium when the referee disallowed Issa Ssekatawa’s would-be goal in the 53rd minute. 

To compound matters, SC Villa’s Sunday Mokili wrapped up the points to end Express’ unbeaten run with a 77-minute winner.

Immediately after the last whistle, there was a rush for the exits as stones, bricks and bottles flew. 

Express FC fans vented their fury over what they deemed poor officiating. Many people were seriously injured with the battle taken to the streets near the stadium. 

The referee spent the night at Nakivubo until the wee hours when police rescued him from angry Express FC supporters who kept vigil at the stadium.
•Iganga vs Express (July 28, 1999).
Iganga had taken the lead in the 84th minute through Magid Kigongo, but Express restored parity two minutes later, thanks to George Ssimwogerere. 

The equaliser, however, rubbed Iganga fans the wrong way and they consequently threw all kinds of objects on the Ssaza Ground pitch.

It took a lot of teargas and gun shots from police to clear the ground, but in the process 
Express player Alex Isabirye was hit by a teargas canister; he had to be rushed to hospital. 

Elsewhere, referee Roberto Bukenya was sneaked out of the Ssaza Ground by Express chairman Godfrey Kirumira.
 •Express vs SC Villa (April 1998). In April 1998, Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi, chose to celebrate his 43rd birthday at Nakivubo Stadium with the football fans. 

The game? Perennial rivals SC Villa and Express FC. Maurice Sunguti gave Express the lead on 10 minutes but shortly after Andrew Mukasa’s equaliser on 24 minutes, stones started flying from the Ki-russia wing. 

The Kabaka watched in shock as the rival fans traded ‘missiles’ before leaving. The chaos continued for almost 30 minutes before the match was eventually abandoned. 

Additional reporting by Ismail Dhakaba