Four Suspects Remanded in Engineer’s Murder Case

Four suspects were remanded on Tuesday for their alleged role in the disappearance and murder of Anthony Takirwa, an engineer who was reported missing for four days before he was found dead in Mbarara early this month.

They are Lynnate Rachel, 40, Mandela Mathias, 25, Justine Atuhaire, 47, and Jonic Tukasingura, 35. They all appeared before Mbarara Grade One Magistrate Rachel Tabaruka and were charged with murder contrary to Sections 188 and 189 of the Penal Code.

However, they were not allowed to enter a plea because they faced a capital offense, which is only tried by the High Court.

According to the charge sheet, the accused, and others still at large, unlawfully caused the death of engineer Anthony Takirwa on April 10, 2024, while at Lugazi Cell in Mbarara City with malice aforethought.

Lilian Katushabe, the wife of the deceased, reported to the police that her husband had gone missing on the night of April 10. He had gone to watch a Champions League football match but never returned home, prompting her to report a case of a missing person.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspects killed the victim, whom they suspected to be a thief, within the walls of their residence on the night of his disappearance. However, the suspects pleaded not guilty, claiming the deceased jumped over their perimeter wall, raising suspicion over his intentions.

Katushabe asserts that the deceased and the suspects lived 150 meters apart in the same area and that the accusation that the victim had jumped over the perimeter wall was a ploy to deny him justice.

According to her statement, the deceased had multiple cuts on his head and crushed toes, indicating that the death was intentional. George Kateshubwa, the father of the deceased, said that his son’s body was taken to the morgue to conceal the crime.

The suspects have been remanded until May 17, 2024.

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