Police in Jinja City have confirmed the apprehension of Latif Abdullah Mulondo, commonly known as Assassin, the ringleader of a machete gang terrorizing locals. Assassin was arrested on Tuesday morning along with four associates.
Rosette Uwimana, 21 (wife to Assassin), Joseph Lubirire, 23, Jacob Ogwal, and Kent Endy Mpumwire are among those arrested with Assassin.
According to the police, their arrest followed the robbery of a Chinese national and an African who were traveling in a Toyota Regius (UAZ 949S) in Jinja City. Armed with machetes, the gang ambushed the vehicle, which was loaded with fish maws (Ennuni) and headed for Kampala in the early hours of Tuesday, October 1, 2024.
“We intercepted them in Mbale City along Tororo Road at the Tororo traffic checkpoint. They were driving a Toyota Mark X (UBM 318D),” said SP James Mubi, Kiira Region police spokesperson, in an interview with Busoga Today.
“They kidnapped the two Chinese nationals and the African, dumping them in a swamp in Budondo. The gang then proceeded to Busede Sub-County, where they offloaded the fish maws into other vehicles and sought a black market,” Mubi added.
He said the group, allegedly facilitated by Kent Endy Mpumwire, 28 (girlfriend to Joseph Lubirire), who recently returned to Uganda from Qatar, had been terrorizing the areas of Bugembe, Mpumudde, Mafubira, and Walukuba-Masese in Jinja City, as well as the districts of Iganga, Bugiri, Busia, and the ghettos of Kisenyi in Kampala and Mbale City, among others.
The five suspects will join four others who are currently on remand at Kirinya Prison on machete-related charges.
These include Chris Kikuli alias Dindodi, Samuel Muwanguzi alias Foster, Faruk Wambogo alias Yellow Skin, and Ramazan Magumba.
Mubi said, “The five suspects and the nine accused persons on remand masterminded the robbery.”
He assured the public that more suspects are expected to be arrested, and noted that machete attacks in Jinja are significantly declining. He also emphasized the police’s commitment to cracking down on these alarming attacks in the community.
