MASAKA, UGANDA; Police in Masaka City have preferred murder charges against Reverend Father Richard Mugisha, a vocal priest attached to Bisanje Catholic Parish in Masaka Catholic diocese.
According to the charge sheet seen by this reporter, it is alleged that on Tuesday night (October 13, 2021) while at Bisanje Catholic Parish, Fr Mugisha together with Joseph Mutayomba beat up and killed Ronald Kyeyune, 30 a suspected robber who had allegedly broken into the priest’s residence located at Bisanje Catholic Parish.
Eyewitnesses say Kyeyune allegedly gained entry into Fr Mugisha’s home through the roof on a mission to steal his car, a Toyota Harrier but was apprehended by the village security team.
Bisanje village chairperson, Mr. Joseph Mutayomba who is also facing murder charges, said his team was near Fr Mugisha’s home at the time of the incident and when they heard a car hooting several times, they became suspicious and rushed to the scene.
“Upon entering the gate, we surrounded Fr Mugisha’s car and when we checked in, we found a naked man in the back seat and had smeared himself with motor vehicle oil all over his body,” he said.
Mr Mutayomba said they managed to overpower Kyeyune and tied him with a rope before calling the police. “It is not true that the suspect was flogged the suspect to death because he was taken by the police when he was still alive,” he said.
Mr Muhammad Nsubuga, the spokesperson of Greater Masaka Regional Police told this website that by the time police rescued Kyeyune, he had no any injuries, but he later developed complications and died as he was being rushed to Masaka Regional Referral Hospital.
He explains that the suspect who was apprehended by the village security team on a routine night patrol was naked and had smeared himself with motor vehicle oil which raises suspicion about his real motive.
Mr Nsubuga said they are waiting for a post mortem report to come out to confirm the cause of Kyeyune’s death.
Controversy surrounding Fr. Mugisha’s Murder Charges
Last year during the election campaigns, the vocal Rev. Fr. Richard Mugisha was on the spot for rallying Ugandans through his position to vote NUP’s Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu for the presidential seat.
While appearing on NTV Uganda on Friday evening, Fr Mugisha wondered why police preferred murder charges against him yet the suspect died in the hands of police.
“Why did police prefer murder charges against me when I was the last person to reach the crime scene? I did not kill anyone, by the way, I would be the one complaining because the windscreen of my vehicle was vandalised,” he wondered.
He questioned the motive of the attacker, saying he started the engine of his car and also hooted several times.
“I am still asking myself why that man (Kyeyune) hooted several times, did he want me to move out of my bedroom so that he kills me, why did he mimic my voice to call our house help to open the gate, it seems he had a hidden agenda,” he said.
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