Combo (L-R): Muhammad Kirumira, Ibrahim Tusuubira Lubega and Andrew Felix Kaweesi
It is early morning, and an SUV is snaking its way in rush-hour traffic. Gunshots suddenly ring out, striking the vehicle's tyres and bringing it to a halt.
Then a motorcycle pulls up next to the car and a rider on the motorcycle shoots the occupants of the vehicle, before speeding off into the bedlam, often shooting in the air to scare off witnesses and possible pursuers. This is not a movie scene, but a real-life drama that has played out in several parts of Uganda, especially around the capital, Kampala, over the past two decades. Yet it often followed what could only be described as a movie script. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a rebel group that first emerged in the early 1990s promoting Islamic fundamentalist ideas, and which is now said to operate in eastern DR Congo, would almost always bear the blame.
Police scene-of-crime officers cordon off the spot where former police spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi (inset) was gunned down metres away from his home in Kulambiro, a Kampala suburb on March 17, 2017. PHOTO | FILE
On occasion, suspects -- men, and dutifully Muslim -- would be arrested and charged with the killings. And even where convictions were obtained, it left a sense of suspense, and a promise of yet another bloody sequel. For one, the victims were disparate with very little in common. The ADF also did not claim responsibility and did not seem to do anything else beyond these ride-by shootings. Was there more than met the eye? The rearrest and charging of former Senior Superintendent of Police, Nixon Agasirwe, for the murder of former Chief Prosecutor Joan Kagezi, has reopened old wounds and lingering conspiracy theories.
The late Kagezi was shot in front of her children as she did roadside shopping on her way home. A suspect convicted in the murder claims Mr Agasiirwe, who was previously interrogated over the murder, was its mastermind. Mr Agasiirwe, who is presumed innocent, has been remanded until next month. Below, we look at some of the famous shootings similar to that of Ms Kagezi.
Former defence forces chief Gen Edward Katumba Wamala, (right) with his bodyguard Khalid Koboyoit after he (Gen) was shot in both arms on the Kisota-Kulambiro Road in Kampala, on Tuesday. PHOTO/COURTESY
Victim: Gen Edward Katumba Wamala
Date: June 1, 2021
The script: Armed gunmen on motorcycles ambushed Gen Katumba in Kisaasi, a Kampala suburb, on his way to work. Gen Katumba, a former Army Commander and Inspector General of Police, who is currently Minister of Works and Transport, was injured but survived. However, his daughter, Brenda Nantongo, and driver, Sgt Hassan Kayondo, were killed.
What followed: A joint security team hunted down the suspected killers, who had been identified on police CCTV cameras. More than a dozen suspects were arrested, while others were shot dead as they allegedly tried to escape from law enforcers. Eight suspects were charged in connection with the fatal shootings. Six of them -- Muhammad Kagugube, Sirimani Kisambira, Abdullah Aziz Ramadhan, Dunka, Kamada Walusimbi, Habib Ramadhan Marjan, and Huzaifah Wampa -- are still on trial in the High Court. Two suspects, Hussein Sserubula and Yusuf Nyanzi, were released by the court last year due to lack of evidence.
Date: June 8, 2018
The script: Abiriga, a flamboyant and jocular Member of Parliament for Arua Municipality, who often dressed in the bright yellow of his National Resistance Movement (NRM) party, was shot dead alongside his bodyguard, Saidi Kongo, by masked men riding on motorcycles at Matugga, Wakiso District, on his way home.
What followed: No arrests were made, and the killers remain at large.
Yellow man. The late Abiriga flashes the NRM thumbs-up symbol as he arrives at Parliament in 2017
Victim: Assistant Superintendent of Police Muhammad Kirumira
Date: September 8, 2018
The script: The police officer and his woman friend were shot dead in his sedan car near his home at Bulenga on Kampala-Masaka Road on September 8, 2018. He had earlier publicly claimed that his life was in danger.
What followed: A month later, the Defence Intelligence and Security (DIS), then called the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence, arrested nine suspects and shot dead one Abdul Kateregga. The suspects were produced in court, but in 2023, were all acquitted for lack of evidence.
Victim: Isaac ‘Mando Zebra’ Ssenyange
Date: December 30, 2020
The script: Gunmen raided the home of Zebra, a former national boxing team captain and shot him dead in the middle of the night. President Museveni later confirmed that state security personnel were involved in the killing and promised a full investigation. Five years later, the suspects are still on the loose.
Isaac ‘Mando Zebra’ Ssenyange
Victim: Ibrahim ‘Isma Olaxes’ Tusuubira
Date: May 7, 2023
The script: This vlogger and social media personality was shot dead as he was being driven to his home in Kyanja, Nakawa Division in Kampala City.
What followed: Although security personnel recovered spent cartridges at the scene, they were unable to find the killer gun or arrest any suspects. The murder remains unresolved.
Victim: Magidu Mugwanya
Date: July 14, 2021
The script: Mugwanya walked out of a bar in Rubaga, a Kampala suburb, drawn by a ruckus outside in which some people were trying to kidnap a woman, who had allegedly failed to repay a loan. When Mugwanya tried to intervene on behalf of the woman, he was shot in the chest and killed.
What followed: Maj Nelson Kyatuka attached to the then Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence was arrested and charged with murder and failure to protect war materials in the General Court Martial at Makindye. Moses Kirunda, a court bailiff, was also named as a person of interest in the matter, alongside another unidentified police officer. They denied the charges, and the case remains unresolved.
Victim: Joshua Nteireho Rushegyera
Date: September 5, 2019
The script: Mr Rushegyera, who was President Museveni’s nephew, and his woman friend, Merina Tumukunde, were shot dead between 10:30pm and 11pm near Nambigirwa Bridge on Entebbe Expressway on September 5, 2019.
What followed: A joint security operation failed to find a motive or arrest any suspects, and the case remains open six years later.
Joshua Nteireho Rushegyera
Victim: Cpl Richard Muhumuza
Date: January 2, 2024
The script: This soldier attached to the Special Forces Command but deployed as a bodyguard to Pastor Aloysius Bujingo, the head of House of Prayer Ministries, was shot dead at Namungoona, a city suburb. He was seated in the co-driver’s seat with Pastor Bujingo driving when he was shot and killed.
What followed: The case remains unresolved, and no arrests have been made.
Victim: Assistant Inspector General of Police Andrew Felix Kaweesi
Date: March 17, 2017
The script: Kaweesi, a fast-rising star in the Force, his bodyguard Cpl Kenneth Erau and driver Godfrey Nambewa, were waylaid and shot dead a few metres away from his residence in Kulambiro, a Kampala suburb. It was an early morning hit, and the police officer was on his way to work.
What followed: Security agencies arrested suspects Abdulrashid Mbaziira, Hamza Higenyi, Shafiq Kasujja, Yusuf Mugerwa, Bruhan Balyejjusa, Joshua Kyambadde, Jibril Kalyango, Yusuf Nyanzi and Shafiq Kasujja, whose murder trial continues in the High Court. However, as the investigations against the civilians continued, the joint security team also arrested senior police officers in connection with the murder. Those arrested included: Gen Kale Kayihura, a former Inspector General of Police; Col Ndahura Atwooki, a former Director Crime Intelligence; Assistant Commissioner of Police Herbert Muhangi, a former Head of Flying Squad Unit; Senior Superintendent of Police Richard Ndaboine, a former head of Cyber Crime Unit; and SSP Nickson Agasiirwe, the head Special Operations Unit.
SSP Nixon Agasirwe at the Chief Magistrate's Court in Nakawa, Kampala on June 16, 2025. PHOTO/ ABUBAKER LUBOWA
Others arrested were Inspector of Police Peter Ayebare, the manager of digital forensics, Assistant Inspector of Police Jonas Ayebaze, a former IT assistant to the former IGP; Sgt Abel Tumukunde, a former Flying Squad Unit officer; Tadeo Juda Opedu, a former bodyguard to ACP Jonathan Baroza, and Abel Abbas Kitagenda, a former Flying Squad Unit operative; Faisal Katende, Flying Squad Unit operative; and Martin Kimbowa, a Witness Protection Unit officer. During the investigation, the joint security team deemed the information implicating the police officers as not credible. The officers were later charged with different offences of illegal extradition of Rwandan refugees and failing to protect war materiel in the General Court Martial. The charges were later dropped.
Gen Salim Saleh (left) with Maj Kiggundu before he was killed. Photo by JB Ssenkubuge
Victim: Maj Muhammad Kiggundu
Date: November 26, 2016
The script: Kiggundu and his bodyguard, Sgt Stephen Mukasa, were gunned down at Masanafu, a Kampala suburb, on a Saturday morning by masked men riding on two motorcycles.
What followed: Over a dozen suspects were arrested in connection with the murder. Four had the charges against them dropped and the remaining eight are still facing charges of murder and terrorism.
