Owners of car, bikes linked to rebels unmasked
Police spokesperson Fred Enanga said the suspected ADF members acquired the impounded car and motorcycles through suspected funding from the ADF. PHOTO | POLICE
What you need to know:
- Hopeful. Our field taskforce is expanding the operation and the team of investigators are compiling files to be taken to directorate of public prosecution for legal advice and to take suspects to court as well,” Fred Enanga, police spokesperson.
A vehicle and two motorcycles, which security forces seized from alleged members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group, are registered with government in the names of a Mayuge District-based Cooperative Union and two car importers in Kampala, Daily Monitor has learnt.
The suspected rebels were arrested in Paida, Zombo District and in Kasese Municipality at the weekend.
According to Uganda Revenue Authority records, the Toyota Premio registration UAV629S is registered to Mecca Trading Limited on Plot M263 Jinja Road in Kampala.
URA records also show that one of the impounded motorcycles registration UFK162A belongs to Nish Auto Limited on PlotM-231, Ntinda Industrial Area, while the other, registration UER049F, is owned by Bugadde Cooperatives Savings and Credit Society Ltd, with headquarters on Nakibengo Road in Bugadde Town Council, Mayuge District.
However, during the press conference on Monday, police spokesperson Fred Enanga said the car and motorcycles belong to the ADF but had no evidence to back the allegations.
When presented with official records on the ownership of the vehicles, Mr Enanga yesterday evening said the suspected ADF members acquired the impounded car and motorcycles through suspected funding from the ADF.
“Both the motorcycles and motor vehicle impounded from them are not in the names of ADF. Have you ever seen any property registered in the names of a rebel group? The operation is targeting collaborators and agents,” he said.
He added: “Our field task force is expanding the operation and the team of investigators are compiling files to be taken to directorate of public prosecution for legal advice and to take suspects to court as well.”
Mr Enanga added that other suspects, who were arrested from Njeru Town council in Jinja City on Saturday, had a flash disc and a mobile phone which they tried to destroy but were overpowered and the items were confiscated.
“We have submitted the phone and the flash disc to the police cyber department to get a forensic evidence on what they were trying to hide,” Mr Enanga said.
ADF has caused instability in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, and Somalia.
Brig Flavia Byekwaso, the Uganda People’s Defence Forces spokesperson, while addressing the media on Monday at police headquarters in Naguru, said external instability in the neighboring countries impacts negatively on Uganda’s security.
“This is true within eastern DRC where we have a lot of armed groups. [In the] West Nile, we have the Homeland Liberation Movement. They are along our borders [and] it impacts [us] negatively in form of refugees coming into Uganda, arms proliferation and others,” she said.
