KAMPALA – Police have denied colluding with a racket of thieves believed to have stolen and vandalised a vehicle belonging to Alex Kushemererwa, a resident of Nakawa Division in Kampala.
Early this week, Mr Kushemererwa reported that his car was stolen from Kamwokya but he managed to trace it in a garage in Kambodia Garage near Bahael Church at Kikaaya. In a social media post, he suggested that police detectives, whom came to help him recover the vehicle seemed to be working with the thieves.
But Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesman Patrick Onyango on Thursday, 25 June 2020, gave a police version of the story, denying the reports.
“A case of stealing from a motor vehicle was reported at Kamwokya Police Post under Kira Road Police Division, Kampala, on 22/6/2020 by Alex Kushemererwa, aged 36 years, a Uber driver and a resident of Butukirwa zone, Bukoto II Parish, Nakawa Division, Kampala.
Its alleged that on 22/06/2020, Kushemererwa took his vehicle registration number UBD 958S, Toyota Raum to a washing bay at Kamwokya. One of the workers in the washing bay drove it out to unidentified location.
When the owner of the car came, he found when his vehicle is not there. Fortunately, the vehicle had a tracking system and it was monitored using GPS which located it at Kambodia Garage near Bahael Church at Kikaaya.
Police of Kamwokya and the victim followed it and found the vehicle had moved to another garage in Kanyanya.
It is alleged the vehicle was driven back to Kamwokya washing bay after realising it was being monitored,
However it was already vandalised of the power from the exhaust.
When the security operatives proceeded to the garage, the owner of the garage Rajab Mpulango called the OC CID Kanyanya for rescue claiming the Officers from Kamwokya and the victim were asking him for Shs2.5 million for vandalising the vehicle.
Kanyanya Police responded as to why the operation was carried out in their area without notifying them and why was the officers demanding for money instead of arresting the suspects.
After the scuffle between the officers, the operation team went back and left Mpulango but they had arrested two prime suspects.
On seeing the misunderstanding between Police Officers, the victim thought that Police of Kanyanya are concealing something about the said garages.
DPC Kawempe was informed about the incident and he proceeded with his team of detectives to Kanyanya to follow up the matter. They arrested Mpulango the owner of the garage and later handed him over to Kamwokya Police on 24/06/2020.
Our preliminary findings indicate that the main person behind vehicle vandalism in these garages is known as Ssalongo, but he is on the run. Mpulango is the main technician in the vandalism.
Our officers were not involved in the car theft racket as the social media posts of Alex seems to portray but there was lack of coordination and communication between the commanders of Kanyanya and Kamwokya.
We have three other suspects. They are Isaac Nanyole, Suleiman Mugerwa and Mpulongo.
They are currently detained at Kira Road Police Station on charges of stealing from a motor vehicle. The suspects are likely to appear in court next week.
Three other suspects are on the run.
We want to appeal to members of the public not to trust their car keys with the people at the washing bays.”
