Three bodyguards of National Unity Platform (NUP) president Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, commonly known as Bobi Wine, have been charged with five counts of robbery and assaulting female journalists.
The suspects—Achilleo Kivumbi, Grace Wakabi alias Smart-wa Bobi, and Gadafi Mugumya—appeared before Masaka Grade One Magistrate Abudallah Kayiira on Wednesday and were remanded to prison until March 13.
They were arrested last week in various parts of Kampala before being transferred to Masaka Central Police Station on Tuesday. According to the prosecution, they, along with others still at large, allegedly committed the offenses in May last year during the burial of UK-based businessman Pascal Ssekasamba at Manja village, Kisekka sub-county, Lwengo district.
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The charge sheet states that the accused assaulted journalist Zainabu Namusaazi of Next Media Group and damaged her video camera. They also allegedly smashed a smartphone belonging to Margret Kayondo, a Radio Simba correspondent, stole two more smartphones, robbed Shs 200,000 in cash, and inflicted grievous bodily harm on three people during a scuffle at the burial.
Senior State Attorney Michael Wakosesa informed the court that the suspects were found in possession of sharp bayonets, which they allegedly used against the victims, making the case qualify for aggravated robbery charges. He requested that the suspects remain in custody while investigations continue and efforts are made to apprehend their alleged accomplices still at large.
Represented by NUP lawyers Samuel Muyizzi and Magellan Kazibwe, the accused were not allowed to take a plea as the magistrate ruled that the lower court lacks jurisdiction over aggravated robbery cases.
Muyizzi strongly objected to the charges, accusing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) of politically targeting NUP members. He argued that the aggravated robbery allegations lack credible evidence and are a tool for political persecution.
The case stems from a tense altercation at the burial, where Kimanya-Kabonera MP Abed Bwanika publicly accused Kyagulanyi of orchestrating attacks against NUP members critical of his leadership.
Witnesses claim that Kivumbi ordered his colleagues to seize a microphone from Bwanika, sparking a scuffle that caught the attention of journalists. In her police statement, Namusaazi alleged that the bodyguards ordered her to stop filming the incident, and when she refused, they assaulted her and destroyed her equipment.
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