Kerry Howard Mwesigwa.
KAMPALA, Uganda | The High Court in Kampala is currently hearing the case against nine suspects who are accused of kidnapping Susan Magara with intent to procure a ransom, and murdering her after receiving $200,000 from her father. The trial has revealed chilling details of how Susan Magara was tortured and killed by her captors, who injected her with an anesthetic drug before slitting her throat.
According to a chief investigator attached to the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI), Mr Frank Nyakairu, who testified in court on Monday, November 1, 2023, Susan Magara was held captive for 21 days in a house in Kigoowa, a suburb of Kampala. During that time, she was repeatedly beaten, burned with a hot iron, and forced to record voice messages begging her family to pay the ransom.
Nyakairu told the court that he tracked down the kidnappers through their mobile phones and SIM cards, which they used to communicate with Susan Magara’s family and demand the ransom. He said that he managed to arrest one of the suspects, Patrick Kasaija, who confessed to his involvement in the crime and led the investigators to the house where Susan Magara was held.
Nyakairu further revealed that the kidnappers injected Susan Magara with an anesthetic drug called ketamine before killing her. He said that they found a syringe and a bottle of ketamine in the house, which matched the traces of the drug found in Susan Magara’s body during the postmortem examination. He also said that they recovered a knife, a pair of scissors, and a blood-stained cloth, which were used to cut Susan Magara’s throat and sever her fingers.
Nyakairu identified the mastermind of the kidnapping and murder as Mohammed Ssebuwufu, alias Muzamiru, who is also the owner of the house where Susan Magara was held. He said that Ssebuwufu was the one who contacted Susan Magara’s father, Mr John Magara, and negotiated the ransom amount. He also said that Ssebuwufu was the one who sent a video of Susan Magara’s severed fingers to her father as proof of life.
Nyakairu named the other suspects as Yusuf Lubega, alias Bosco, who was in charge of guarding Susan Magara at the house; Hassan Kato Miiro, who was responsible for transporting Susan Magara from one location to another; Abdul Hakim Lubega, who was involved in collecting the ransom money; Mahad Kasalita, who was an accomplice of Ssebuwufu; Joshua James Kulaba, who was a friend of Ssebuwufu; Stephen Lwanga, who was a driver of Ssebuwufu; Yahaya Arafat Senfuka, who was a relative of Ssebuwufu; and Patrick Kasaija, who was arrested by Nyakairu.
The trial is still ongoing, and the suspects are facing charges of kidnapping with intent to procure a ransom, murder, aggravated robbery, and conspiracy to commit a felony. They have pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and are being represented by lawyers from the Legal Aid Project of Uganda Law Society. The prosecution is being led by Ms Lillian Omara, a senior principal state attorney.
