Children of the late Joan Kagezi, the assistant director of public prosecutions; Phillip Kagezi and Carol Kagezi, at the International Crimes Division Court on May 19, 2025 after Daniel Kisekka, a UPDF deserter, was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison for the murder of their mother. PHOTO/ABUBAKER LUBOWA
A man who deserted from the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), on May 19 voluntarily pleaded guilty to participating in the mission that ended the life of Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Joan Kagezi in 2015.
Daniel Kiwanuka Kisekka decided to plead guilty under a plea bargaining arrangement, a judicial system that allows a suspect to own up to their guilt in exchange for a lenient sentence or a lesser charge.
According to the plea bargaining agreement, Kisekka will now be turned into a State witness to testify against the remaining three suspects.
The 47-year-old husband of three wives and father of nine children was sentenced by a panel of four justices. The justices included Michael Elubu, Steven Mubiru, Winifred Nabisinde, and Celia Nagawa of the International Crimes Division of the High Court in Kampala.
The court also allowed the withdrawal of the charge of terrorism presented by Mr Thomas Jatiko from the DPP’s office, which was the second charge that Kisekka was facing.
"Pursuant to the nolle prosequi, the charge of terrorism against Kisekka Daniel is hereby withdrawn," declared Justice Elubu. The courtroom was packed with people, including the late Kagezi’s children, some of whom were present 10 years ago when the suspects allegedly struck and killed their mother.
Court documents show that Mr Kisekka joined the UPDF in 2003 and served upto 2006 when he deserted the army from Gulu Army Barracks. At the time of his desertion, he stole two AK-47 rifles with five loaded magazines of ammunition, which were the property of the UPDF.
He was assisted by one of the remaining suspects in this case, and a friend, to transport the guns from Gulu District to Kampala. Court documents say upon arrival in Kampala, the accused linked up with his other friends, Mr Nasur Abdallah, a one Mugonole, and Mr John Massajage, who were then residents in Nabweru, Kyebando, and Kanyanya areas in Kawempe Division, and they lived together.
Kisekka and his colleagues, upon settling in Kampala, embarked on a life of crime, particularly armed robbery, using the guns and ammunition that had been stolen from Gulu.
They engaged in a spate of armed robberies, and in the process, they lost one gun with a magazine during a foiled robbery in Kiboga District.
Subsequently, in 2008, Kisekka and his three friends were arrested by police during the famous ‘Operation Wembley’ initiative, which was launched by police to combat armed robberies in the country.
The second gun and the four remaining magazines with ammunition were recovered from the accused person, together with several other stolen items. Because they were arrested with guns, which are a preserve of the UPDF, they were charged before the General Court Martial then where their co-accused were convicted and sentenced to six years’ imprisonment.
Kisekka was found not guilty of all the charges in the military court, but somehow, he managed to escape from prison in Makindye Military Barracks and returned to Kayunga District, where he remained in hiding while he engaged in charcoal burning and farming.
But in February 2015, Kibuuka visited his friend Kisekka at Galariya-Kayunga and introduced to him the idea of a mission which involved murdering Kagezi, who, according to him, was a judge in court. After some persuasion, Kisekka was convinced and he agreed to participate in the murder for a fee.
He later travelled to Kampala, where he met Mr Kibuuka and the other alleged co-conspirators, who included Mr Massajjage and Mr Mugonole, under a mango tree in Kyebando, a suburb in Kampala. At this meeting, court heard, Mr Kibuuka briefed the group that the murder of Kagezi was to be done at a fee and that the total pay for the job was to be $200,000 (about Shs736m) with an initial deposit of Shs2m split equally among the four of them.
The details of the person who commissioned the hit on the late Kagezi were not disclosed, but the group was informed it was a high-ranking person. The reason for the hit was disclosed as Kagezi’s interference with Muslim cases.
On the fateful day
The court indictment shows that on the day of the assassination, Kisekka received the two guns from Mr Kibuuka. He cleaned and oiled the guns and loaded them in a sack. The group of four met at Kyebando under a mango tree to do the final briefing.
Mr Kibuuka allegedly gave each person Shs500,000 as an advance for the mission. At this point, Mr Kisekka handed over to Kibuuka one gun, and he remained with one. Then Mr Massajjage rode on one motor bike with Mr Kibuuka being the cyclist, while Mugonole and Kisekka rode on another motorcycle.
They proceeded to the scene (Kiwatule) via the Bahai Temple in Kisaasi side and waited near a church in Kiwatule as Mr Kibuuka allegedly coordinated on the phone. Mr Massajjage and Mr Kibuuka were the execution team, while Mr Mugonole and Kisekka were the backup team. On the fateful day of March 30, 2015, Kagezi was on her way home from work, driving in her official vehicle, a white Ford double-cabin pickup Registration Number UG 0586J, together with three of her children.
At about 7pm, she approached the scene from the Ntinda side and stopped by a roadside stall to purchase fruits. Mr Massajjage and Mr Kibuuka, who had been waiting nearby on their motorcycle, followed her vehicle and parked near it.
Mr Kibuuka then jumped off the motorcycle, pulled out the gun which had been concealed within his jacket, and allegedly shot Kagezi twice on her neck through the car window, shattering the window glass and fatally injuring her. He then jumped on the motorcycle, and the two immediately fled the scene towards the direction of Najjera and disappeared.
As they fled the scene, Kisekka and Mr Mugonole, who had been on standby as a backup team nearby, fired a bullet to scare away people as the two also rode away from the scene in the same direction taken by their colleagues.
Seeking powers of witchdoctor
Court documents further say two days after the incident, Kisekka, Mr Kibuuka, and Mr Mugonole went to see a witchdoctor in Kayunga. The accused led the group to Mr Joseph Olowo’s shrine in Kayunga, where they informed Mr Olowo about a big crime they had committed and requested him to perform rituals to ‘silence the case’ so that they would not be traced or arrested and the spirit of the deceased would not haunt or disturb them.
Upon payment of the agreed Shs200,000, Mr Olowo performed some rituals on them. Mr Kibuuka and Mr Mugonole returned to Kampala, while Kisekka remained in Kayunga, where he continued to live quietly in hiding. Kisekka and his accomplices remained in hiding for over eight years after the incident, as the police continued with investigations.
But in August 2023, police obtained credible information from sources that the four individuals were the ones who murdered Joan Kagezi. A manhunt was launched to track down and apprehend them . In August 2023, Mr Massajjage was tracked and arrested from Wandegeya, where he was doing business of boda boda riding, court heard.
Kisekka’s arrest
In October 2023, Kisekka and another were arrested by police in Luweero District in connection with an unrelated case of theft of property. While in custody in Luweero, it was discovered that Kisekka was a person of interest over the murder of Kagezi. He was transferred to Kampala for interviewing, and during the session, he confessed to having participated in the killing.
The man, the crime
Daniel Kiwanuka Kisekka is the sixth child in a polygamous family of over 20 children and only managed to attend school up to Senior Three before joining the UPDF in 2003 to render patriotic services to the nation.
Prosecution said the murder of Kagezi was meticulously planned by the accused persons over a lengthy period of time and was premeditated. The sole purpose of the crime was exclusively to cause the death of Kagezi, Kisekka was motivated by personal benefit in committing the crime where he received Shs500, 000 for his crime with a promise to share in an additional $200,000 after a successful commission of the crime.
