24But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have
received your consolation. 25Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto
you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and
weep. (Luke 6:24-25)
FIRST READ:
SHOCKING CHILD SACRIFICE STORIES IN THE UGANDA PRESS
http://www.freewebs.com/kizitomg/3.htm
Prosecution proved that Kajubi murdered Kasirye, a pupil of Kayugi primary school in Mukungwe sub-county in Masaka district, on October 27, 2008 in one of the ritual murders that shocked the nation.
Kajubi jailed for life over ritual murder
Friday, 27 July 2012 00:08
High Court sitting in Masaka yesterday sentenced Kampala businessman, Godfrey Kato Kajubi, to life imprisonment for the ritual murder of a 12-year-old boy, Joseph Kasirye.
Prosecution proved that Kajubi murdered Kasirye, a pupil of Kayugi primary school in Mukungwe sub-county in Masaka district, on October 27, 2008 in one of the ritual murders that shocked the nation.
Kasirye’s head and private parts were cut off and
have, to date, never been recovered. The case was under a retrial after the
Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) successfully challenged the High Court
decision that had, in an earlier trial, acquitted Kajubi of the gruesome
murder.
Justice Moses Mukiibi had acquitted Kajubi,
reasoning that prosecution had failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he
was behind Kasirye’s murder. In appealing against the acquittal, the state
argued that the trial judge failed to evaluate the evidence on record and came
up with a wrong decision.
In their ruling, the three justices of the Court
of Appeal sided with prosecution and said the 22 prosecution witnesses had
proven the case against Kajubi beyond reasonable doubt.
The judges ruled that the trial judge erred in
law when he acquitted Kajubi and on that basis, the appellant court ordered for
retrial, before another judge. Reading his ruling before a fully packed
courtroom in Masaka yesterday, trial judge, Justice Mike Chibita, said life
imprisonment would act as a deterrent to all child tormentors.
“I want the children of Uganda to sleep
happy tonight, knowing that one of their tormentors is now in prison for life,”
Justice Chibita said.
Prosecution led by state attorneys Suzan Okalany
and John Bosco Asiimwe presented 18 prosecution witnesses who pinned Kajubi.
They included a witchdoctor, Umar Kateregga and his wife, Mariam Nabukeera, his
earlier accomplices.
Prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that
Kajubi sponsored Kasirye’s ritual murder, which was carried out by Kateregga
and Nabukeera. The duo was initially Kajubi’s co-accused before they later
became prosecution witnesses and the DPP withdrew the indictments against them.
Justice Chibita said in his ruling yesterday that
he found the evidence of witchdoctor and his wife useful and collaborative and,
and said it had confirmed that indeed, Kajubi participated in the murder.
Kateregga and Nabukeera told court that after
Kasirye’s murder, his head and privates were cut off, wrapped in a polythene
bag and packed in a box before they were handed to Kajubi. It was Kateregga that
led the police to a swamp in Kayugi where Kasirye’s torso had been dumped.
A medical report indicated that the boy died
after his head, neck and genitalia were severed using a sharp object. Justice
Chibita said in his ruling that Kajubi knows where Kasirye’s missing body parts
are since they were handed to him.
The judge concurred with prosecution that a
computer printout of the mobile phone numbers of Kajubi (0772700921) and
Kateregga (0773717631) confirmed that the two communicated before, during and
after the murder.
Furthermore, Justice Chibita said, the fact that
Kajubi went into hiding after the Court of Appeal had ordered a retrial was an
indication of his guilt. Kajubi evaded arrest for more than one and a half
years until he ran out of luck in December 2011 when he was arrested from a
shrine in Lweza A Zone near Kajjansi, a Kampala
suburb.
He was later transferred to Masaka, where he was
retried. Prosecution had pushed for the maximum sentence of death, but Kajubi’s
lawyer, Fred Kamugunda, had asked court for lenience, arguing that his client
was the sole breadwinner for 27 family members. Kajubi, who was nervous
throughout the judgement session, broke down in tears when the sentence was
announced.
Kajubi murder case timeline
- October, 27, 2008: Joseph Kasirye (deceased) disappears from his grandfather’s home in Masaka and is brutally murdered.
- October 28, 2008: Kasirye’s body is recovered in a swamp in Kayugi near lake Kayugi in Masaka.
- October 28, 2008, Umar Kateregga and Mariam Nabukeera arrested (first suspects)
- December 2008: Kato Kajubi arrested in connection with the ritual murder
- August, 6, 2009: Trial begins in High Court, sitting in Masaka; DDP withdraws charges against Kajubi’s co-accused, Kateregga and Nabukeera, and turns them into key prosecution witnesses.
- April 22, 2010: Justice Moses Mukiibi acquits Kajubi and ordered for his release.
- July 2010: Joseph Mugwanya, father of the deceased, petitions High Court seeking Shs 1bn as compensation from Kajubi for his son’s death.
- November 2010: Court of appeal orders Kajubi’s retrial following an appeal against the conviction by the state; Kajubi goes into hiding.
- December 19, 2011: Kajubi arrested in a shrine at Lweza, in Kajjansi near Kampala and is taken to Masaka for retrial under Justice Mike Chibita
- March 2012: Justice Elizabeth Musoke throws out Munyagwa’s petition (seeking compensation) after the applicant’s loss of interest.
- July, 26 2012: Justice Chibita convicts Kajubi of murder and sentences him to life imprisonment.
City tycoon Kato Kajubi gets life sentence
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/633426-city-tycoon-kato-kajubi-gets-life-sentence.html
Publish Date: Jul 26, 2012
Godfrey Kato Kajubi
By Online ReporterCourt in Masaka has sentenced Kampala City Tycoon Godfrey Kato Kajubi to life imprisonment.
Masaka High Court judge Justice Michael Chibita convicted Kajubi of ritual murder.
He read his ruling to a packed court room Thursday afternoon. His ruling was welcomed by Masaka residents and the relatives of the deceased who said justice had been delivered.
The case was under a retrial after the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) challenged the High Court decision to acquit Kajubi.
Prosecution said Kajubi is sponsored the ritual murder of a 12 year old Joseph Kasirye a pupil of Kayugi Primary School in Mukungwe sub-county in Masaka district on October 27, 2008.
Kajubi’s co- accused Mariam Nabukeera and Umar Kateregga were turned into prosecution witnesses to pin Kajubi.
Kato Kajubi sentenced to life in prison
http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Kato+Kajubi+sentenced+to+life+in+prison/-/688334/1463788/-/lwr2kb/-/index.html
By Michael J. Ssali & Anthony Wesaka
Posted Thursday, July 26 2012 at 15:25
Mr Kajubi was accused of hiring Umar Kateregga, a witchdoctor, and his wife Mariam Nabukeera to slaughter Kasirye for ritual purposes.
Prosecution alleged that the businessman took Kasirye’s head and genitals to be used in “cleansing” his real estate businesses after the sacrifice.
The presiding judge, Mike Chibita, said that the prosecution had produced sufficient evidence to squarely prove that Kajubi had taken the body parts.
The crime was committed in October 2008.