Mbale City, Uganda: Police have revealed that a man arrested over the defilement and murder of a 15-year-old student in Mbale City has confessed to killing 49 people in alleged ritual sacrifices carried out on the instructions of a witch doctor.
The suspect was arrested over the weekend on the allegations of defiling and murdering Sumaya Edrisa Binti, 15, a Senior Two student at Nakaloke Secondary School, whose body was found in a lodge room in Mbale City on March 23, 2025.
According to police, the suspect allegedly cut off Binti’s index finger and collected her blood before fleeing the scene.
Crime Intelligence operatives, led by Assistant Superintendent of Police Ismael Ssenono, arrested the suspect on Saturday last week in Budebela Cell, Mayuge Town Council, following months of tracking and surveillance.
Police sources involved in the investigations say the suspect admitted responsibility for Binti’s killing and claimed to have murdered 48 other victims under similar circumstances.
“The suspect told detectives that a witch doctor asked him for human blood and an index finger to be used in ritual practices. He alleges that he was paid Shs5 million for the blood and the finger,” a senior police officer said.
The suspect is currently detained at Iganga Central Police Station, pending transfer to Mbale City, where investigations into Binti’s murder are ongoing.
Police said they are scrutinising the suspect’s claims, noting that he has a separate pending human trafficking case whose circumstances mirror those surrounding Binti’s death.
“We are making serious efforts to examine his statements regarding the alleged deaths of the 49 girls because he has another human trafficking case in court. The pending case is similar to that of Binti,” the officer said.
Investigators noted that apart from Binti, the suspect has not yet provided names or identities of the other alleged victims.
How suspect killed Binti
Police records indicate that on the morning of March 23, the suspect checked into Grace Guest House in Mbale City at about 9:00 am, requesting a room where he intended to spend the night.
According to police, the guest house receptionist, Peter Nabende, showed the suspect several rooms before he selected Room 11, after rejecting others for size. The suspect reportedly told management that his girlfriend would later join him in the room. After paying the bill, he was left alone.
About four hours later, a staff member entered the room and found Binti’s naked body tied to the bed with a mosquito net, with one finger severed. The suspect had already fled.
As workers grappled with the discovery, police say the suspect allegedly called the guest house manager and advised him to check Room 11 for their property. The murder was reported at Nkoma Police Station, but efforts to identify and trace the suspect stalled for several months.
Arrested in Mayuge
On June 29, police arrested the suspect in Mayuge District while he was reportedly in a guest house with a 16-year-old girl. He was charged with human trafficking, produced in court, and remanded to prison before later securing bail on October 16.
Investigators say after his release, the suspect allegedly reconnected with the same traditional healer to continue ritual activities until his eventual rearrest over the weekend after dots of investigating officers landed on him.
Police say investigations are ongoing to establish the identities of traditional healers and accomplices allegedly linked to the suspected ritual killings.
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