Police in Masaka are investigating circumstances under which a young man was killed by a mob of people on allegations that he had stolen coffee from a plantation.

This incident happened on May 2, 2024, late in the night in Bulegeya village in Kyanamukaka subcounty, Masaka district.

According to some residents of Bulegeya village, the deceased was driving a boda boda, registration number UDJ 113K.

It is alleged that the deceased stole coffee from one of the residents’ coffee plantations and, when caught by residents, they beat him up, hacked him to death, and threw his body at the roadside.

In an interview on May 3, 2024, Twaha Kasirye, the Greater Masaka Police Spokesperson, confirmed the deceased’s death and said that the identity of the deceased is still unknown, but investigations are underway.

Kasirye added that the reason for the victim’s death is still unknown, despite the allegations that he was caught stealing coffee from a plantation that was not his.

‘’It is so unfortunate that this young man was brutally hacked to death by a mob of people on just allegations that he had stolen, which is so wrong because this is how innocent people lose their lives jokingly,’’ Kasirye revealed.

He added that whoever participated in the act is also going to be arrested because mob justice is strongly prohibited by law.

Kasirye further called upon people to stop mob justice because, at times, people are killed on assumptions.

Emmanuel Seruge, a resident of Masaka, said that people with coffee plantations in the district are very tough and are tired of people who steal from their coffee plantations, which is why they beat suspects up.