Man on the run after killing lover

Police in Tororo District have launched a manhunt for a 34-year-old man who allegedly murdered his lover following a domestic misunderstanding.

It is alleged that the suspect killed his 48-year-old lover, Beatrice Amoit alias Ijuwa, whose body was discovered in a pool of blood by the local community at Mangen Trading Centre, Kalait Sub County in Tororo District on Friday.

The Bukedi regional police Spokesperson, Mr Moses Mugwe, said the deceased was found lying dead in a pool of blood behind her house with three deep cuts on the head.

He identified the suspect as Robert Kanisho from Kabwin Village, Kururuma Sub-Location in Kenya.

“Our preliminary findings revealed how the deceased has been having misunderstandings with her lover known as Robert Kanisho. On the fateful day, he threatened to kill her and she reported to the LC1 chairman at night who promised to handle the matter in the morning, but residents were shocked to find Amoit dead in the morning,” Mr Mugwe said in a statement.

He said the residents informed the area LC1 Chairman who reported the matter to olice.

“We are investigating a murder case. The suspect is believed to have fled to Kenya after committing an offence, and is currently at large and efforts are on to have him apprehended such that he helps us in these investigations,” Mr Mugwe said.

The body of the deceased was conveyed to Tororo General Hospital mortuary for postmortem.

In 2022, the Minister of Gender, Ms Betty Amongi, said at least 223 women and girls succumb to gender and sexual violence every year.

The 2020 National Survey on violence against women and girls in Uganda conducted by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) revealed that 95 per cent of Ugandan women and girls had experienced physical or sexual violence.

According to the Police Annual Crime Report of 2022, 17,698 cases of Domestic Violence were reported in 2022 compared to 17,533 cases reported in 2021.

Police said there was a general increase in cases of Domestic Violence registered countrywide. A total of 18,549 people were victims of domestic violence, of whom 3,728 were male adults, 13,052 were female adults, and 819 were male juveniles while 950 were female juveniles.

The report also indicates that a total of 301 cases of murder as a result of domestic violence were reported in 2022 compared to 376 cases reported in 2021.