KAMPALA, UGANDA: After being on the run for five years, fugitive senior police officer ACP Siraje Bakaleke has finally been arrested and released on bond after he surrendered himself to the forces last week.
The Police Spokesperson SCP Fred Enanga on Monday confirmed that Bakaleke showed up at the Police headquarters where he reported himself before he was handed over to CID to answer charges related to deserting the force.
“It is true after several years, he (Bakaleke) reported to police headquarters and was forwarded to the directorate of criminal investigations(CID) where he recorded a statement on charges of desertion. He was briefly detained and then given police bond and he is answering it,” said Enanga.
“Desertion is a criminal offence and the file will go to DPP later today and we shall be guided by the legal opinion,” he added.
Enanga however explained that they will be waiting to hear from the DPP in regard to the reinstatement of the charges against the senior police officer who has been on the run for five years after the case was discontinued in 2019.
“That file (for defrauding) was set aside because the alleged suspect Bakaleke was not around but we shall be guided by the office of the DPP on that(file),” Enanga said.
Background
ACP Bakaleke went in 2018 missing after an arrest warrant issued by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Martin Okoth Ochola to have him apprehended over charges related to office abuse, kidnap and fraud.
Then Kampala Metropolitan South Police Commander and one of the top officers loyal to then IGP Gen Kale Kayihura, Bakaleke was accused of defrauding South Korean nationals who pinned him to be the mastermind of the billions of money they lost in a conspired way.
The two South Korean investors identified as Park Seunghoon and Jang Shingu Un from Mckineley Resource Company Limited alleged that they were scheduled to meet some gold dealers in Kampala when they were surrounded by security operatives who asked them to hand over the $415,000 they had at gunpoint before going away with it.
Reports indicated that on the day of the meeting, the dealers were surrounded by security operatives, put on gunpoint and asked to hand over the money in their possession.
A total of Shs1.4 billion was handed over to the police officers before the two South Koreans were arrested and detained at Katwe Police Station. They were later told that they were facing terrorism charges and would be deported.
It later turned out that the deployment had been sanctioned by ACP Bakaleke after a tip-off from the lawyer who indicated that two of his clients were involved in dubious activities and he had a suspicion that they were financial terrorists.
The police officers reportedly bought two air tickets with Emirates air using some of the extorted money. But they missed the flight, creating confusion among the plotters of the deportation. They hurriedly bought new tickets with Rwanda Air but were netted before the South Koreans boarded the plane.
Before he became a fugitive, Bakaleke was accused of fraud, kidnap and abuse of office alongside the lawyer Paul Wanyoto Mugoya, Nabeta Samuel Mulowooza, the Managing Director of Eye Power Engineering Company and police officers Robert Munezero, Innocent Nuwagaba, Robert Ray Asiimwe, Junior Amanya, Babu Gastavas and Kenneth Zirintuusa.
While eight of the suspects took a plea to the charges in court, Bakaleke and lawyer Paul Wanyoto have yet to be charged with arrest warrants issued against the two of them.
Following effortless attempts to trace Bakaleke, Police asked him to report for duty or else he risked being declared being away without official permission.
The force later declared ACP Bakeleke as a deserter after he failed to show up. He was believed to have run into exile in an unknown country.
In 2019, the Director of Public Prosecutions discontinued charges against Bakaleke and his co-accused.
“This is to inform you that the Director of Public Prosecutions has decided to discontinue proceedings against ACP Haj Siraje Bakaleke, Paul Mugoya Wanyoto, Samuel Nabeta Mulowooza, D/ASP Innocent Nuwagaba, D/ASP Robert Ray Asiimwe, PC Junior Amanya, PC Gastavas Babu and PC Kenneth Zirintusa charged with abuse of office (three counts), embezzlement, obtaining money with false pretence, conspiracy to defraud, kidnapping or abducting with intent to commit a felony (three counts), pending arrest,” the DPP wrote to court in May 2019.
Did Bakaleke run into exile?
Initial media reports had first reported that Bakaleke had left Uganda and sought sanctuary in Netherlands or Sweden, but this website solely understands that the senior police office had never left Uganda.
He instead ran to his native home district in Buyende, Eastern Uganda for close to three years before returning to his residence in Nansana Wakiso where he kept a low profile.
A source close to the troubled office said Bakalele last week voluntarily handed himself in at the CID head offices in Kibuli seeking to kick start a re-integration process that will see him go thru the disciplinary proceedings so he can be redeployed if he gets acquitted on the disciplinary charges of absence from duty without official leave (awol).
Despite the DPP discontinuing charges against him in 2019, this didn’t mean the charges had been dismissed but rather would be reinstated after the arrest.
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