Govt fails to find Kagezi killers in seven years
Joan Kagezi
What you need to know:
- Police arrested some suspects but they were all later released for lack of evidence
When Joan Kagezi, then assistant director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), was assassinated in Najjeera, a suburb in Kira Town Council, Wakiso District, on March 30, 2015, the public eagerly waited for justice.
However, seven years later, no suspect has been charged.
Police arrested some suspects but they were all later released for lack of evidence. At the time of the murder, Kagezi was prosecuting a case of terrorism that involved suspects in the 2010 Kampala twin bombing. Many of the suspects in the case have since been convicted.
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When this publication asked Ms Jacquelyn Okui, the spokesperson of the Office of the DPP, on why it has taken them long to prosecute suspects linked to Kagezi’s killing, she said they sent the file back to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to conduct more investigations.
“The last time the office handled the case file was in September 2021. The file was perused, observations made and various areas of inquiry noted,” Ms Okui said yesterday.
She added: “The observations and areas of further inquiry were pointed out to the director of CID with guidance to conduct further investigations into the matter. The office awaits feedback from the police.”
Efforts to reach Mr Charles Twiine, the spokesperson of the CID, were futile as he said he was still in a meeting by press time.
But in 2019, the police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga, said: “We are very sure that the evidence is sufficient enough to get the persons involved in the murder of Joan Kagezi.”
During one of the Covid-19 televised nation addresses in June last year, President Museveni said Kagezi’s killers were hiding abroad.
He added that they were supposed to be brought into the country for trial but the International Police (InterPol) unit had not yet done so.
Meanwhile, the office of the DPP will hold the 5th Joan Kagezi memorial lecture next week, which is expected to be graced by the President.
The lecture will run under the theme, ‘Human Trafficking Challenge: Addressing Emerging Trend.’
The Office of the DPP said the theme was picked because Kagezi used to fight against terrorism and human trafficking.
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