The State yesterday tabled its evidence against the former commander of Kampala Central Police Station, Aaron Siringi Baguma, detailing his role in the build up to the murder of businesswoman Betty Donah Katusabe last year.
According to the summary of the case prepared by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Katushabe purchased a car from Ssebuwufu pending a balance of Shs.9 million.
After the deceased failed to pay the balance on time, Ssebuwufu instructed Tasingika, a crime preventer, to report a case of theft of the car at CPS.
A1 Ssebuwufu
On 21/10/2015, at around 7am, accused five (A5 Tasingika) in the company of three police officers from CPS left for Bwebajja along Entebbe road where the deceased used to reside to effect her arrest.
The accused booked at Bwebajja police station under SD reference 03/21/10/15 at 7:29am and then proceeded to Katushabe’s residence from where they arrested her.
The deceased was driven to Kampala in a Toyota Premio registration number UAP 155T, which took her straight to Ssebuwufu’s Pine car bond in Nakasero instead of CPS.
Tasingika handed Katushabe over to Ssebuwufu in the presence of Kayiza, Mirambe, Lwanga, Kitayimbwa, Sentongo and one Sam Kiwanuka alias Damage who is still at large.
Soon after the police officers left, Ssebuwufu started assaulting Katushabe using a Panga, with which he hit her on the back and thighs while saying, “If you don’t pay the money, you are going to die.”
Ssebuwufu was joined by Mirambe, Lwanga, Kitayimbwa, Sentongo and one Sam Kiwanuka alias Damage as they ganged up to beat Katushabe and tear her clothes.
The deceased was at one point asked to call her sister to pay up and get her off the hook.
While still talking to her sister, accused one (Ssebuwufu), took the phone away from the deceased and told her sister that if they wanted her alive, they should pay his money, and he gave her the telephone number of accused five (Tasingika) where the money was to be deposited by way of mobile money. This, the DPP stated, happened while the deceased was handcuffed.
How Baguma came in;
At around 3pm, Baguma arrived at the bond in the company of other police officers on a police pick-up truck and went straight to Ssebuwufu’s office. There, he found Katushabe in confinement, and having been tortured.
Baguma went to Ssebuwufu’s office where the two held a discussion for about 15 minutes and was seen going out in the company of A1 [Ssebuwufu] to his motor vehicle, where Accused One handed A8 [Baguma] an unascertained sum of money.
Before leaving, Baguma told Ssebuwufu to handle the Katushabe issue, failing which he should call him.
On Baguma’s way out of the office, the deceased pleaded with him, being a police officer, not to leave her behind lest A1 [Ssebuwufu] and his co-accused would kill her, but Baguma did not heed to the deceased’s plea.
Soon after Baguma’s departure, Ssebuwufu and his co-accused became even wilder as they continued to batter Katushabe.
The deceased remained at the crime scene until she was finally rescued by a team commanded by Kampala Central Police Station OC and taken to Mulago hospital in an ambulance where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
