Police have said Fortunate Ayebare, who was reported missing on Wednesday evening, is in their custody. According to a police source, she is wanted in connection with the kidnap and murder of Maria Nagirinya, a former Social Worker with the Community Integrated Development Initiative (CIDI).
Nagirinya was kidnapped outside her home in Lungujja, Rubaga Division alongside her driver also boda boda rider, Ronald Kitayimbwa on August 28, 2019. Their lifeless bodies were found dumped at Nama sub-county in Mukono district three days later.
A senior security officer intimated to URN that Ayebare was picked up by a joint security team comprising operatives from the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) and Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) in connection with Nagirinya’s murder.
According to the source, the operatives trailed Ayebare from Kampala city up to Kireka from where they picked her because she was among the last three girls seen with Nagirinya hours to her kidnap and subsequent murder.
After apprehending the suspect, the operatives proceeded to Kireka police station where they identified themselves and stated the reason why she was picked up. The suspect was later driven to Katwe police station where she was briefly detained and later transferred to an unknown facility.
Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson, Patrick Onyango, says Ayebare’s parents were informed why their daughter was arrested but cautioned not to speak to the media. On Wednesday, the deputy police spokesperson, Polly Namaye released the CCTV footage on showing Nagirinya’s car UBA 570V being chauffeured by the alleged kidnappers.
“The images have been retrieved from an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) camera and one can clearly see from these pictures that the assailant is wearing a white shirt, a reddish coat and a cap on his head. He is of a dark skin complexion,” Namaye said while releasing the footage.
Adding that, “This is, therefore, to appeal to members of the public and to any other person(s) who have useful information leading to the arrest of this suspect in the pictures to contact the nearest police station or call the telephone numbers provided.”
Police have also announced an unspecified bounty for a person who will identify the person seen driving Nagirinya’s car.
