Woman detained for bribing policemen to release suspect

KAMPALA, UGANDA: The Old Kampala Police Division is holding a woman on allegations of attempting to bribe two senior police officers with 1 million Shillings for the release of her brother who had been detained on robbery charges.

The suspect identified as Oliva Asiimwe, attempted to bribe Detective Constable Stanley Ibanda, and Kalim Omar with one million Shillings to release his brother Ivan Akanyijjuka, who is a member of a criminal gang that has been terrorizing pedestrians along the Kampala Northern Bypass.

Police preliminary findings indicate that on March 11, Akanyijjuka together with two of his accomplices; Benjamin Kato and Barnabas Kavuma, who were armed with knives, attacked one Musa Muganga in Lungujja, Lubaga Division and stabbed him before taking his belongings. However, Muganga sounded an alarm that attracted residents and police who were on night patrol leading to the arrest.

But Police Spokesperson Fred Enanga said Asiimwe attempted to bribe officers to forego investigations that would lead to the potential prosecution of her brother. The investigating officers instead reported the matter to their superiors leading to her arrest.

Enanga says the two officers have been applauded by the Inspector General of Police for their outstanding work in promoting integrity, transparency and professionalism.

“What they did is representative of the outstanding work of police, in promoting integrity by our frontline officers who are the majority, because this is the same level at which we have got a lot of complaints on the integrity of our officers. We’re happy that a vast majority of officers are committed and dedicated to performing their duties with professionalism,” Enanga stated.