Locals in Buwani village in Mityana district are living in fear after machete-wielding thugs attacked, severely injured a female mobile money agent, and robbed her of money earned from selling coffee.
This incident happened in the wee hours of the morning on February 17, 2025, during a village function where loud music masked the sounds of the attack, allowing the thugs to go undetected.
The assailants targeted three more families, applying violence against anyone who resisted their demands.
However, the family that suffered the most belonged to John Bosco Kyambadde, whose wife, Betty Namayanja, was severely attacked.
The victim, a mobile money agent, sustained cuts on her back and neck as the attackers demanded the money she had made from her coffee sales.
Namayanja disclosed that she woke up to a flashlight in her face, with voices aggressively pestering her for the earnings she made from her coffee sales.
Her desperate cries for help fell on deaf ears as the thugs began cutting her with a panga, severing her shoulder blades and neck, and also kicked her in her wounded neck to silence her.
’’These thugs also stole a few of my domestic animals, like cows, pigs, and goats, leaving me in such despair,’’ Namayanja said.
Namayanja said that security needed to be heightened in Mityana district because the locals are now living in constant fear due to the increasing frequency of machete attacks.
The Wamala region police spokesperson, SP Rachael Kawala, revealed that investigations are underway.
Authorities believe that these thugs might have followed Namayanja after she had been paid for the sell-off of her coffee, or the people who paid her might have followed her too and waited for nightfall to rob her.
’’It seems that these thugs are targeting coffee growers; however, investigations are underway, and we are going to do our best to fight this bad vice,’’ Kawala said.
Kawala called upon those who deal in coffee to dispose of the money they sell into their bank accounts to avoid being attacked by these thugs since their main aim when attacking those who sell off their coffee is the money attained after their sell-off.
In 2024, Mityana District experienced a series of attacks targeting coffee traders and related businesses.
On November 29, 2024, a truck transporting 21,600 kilograms of coffee beans, valued at UGX 470 million, from Kasese to Nakawa was hijacked in Kawempe.
The coffee was offloaded onto other vehicles and taken to Luzira for sale. Police arrested several suspects, including Juma Musisi, who later escaped from custody at the Nabweru Chief Magistrates Court.
Machete attacks have been rising in various parts of the country, particularly targeting coffee-growing districts, and the recent surge in violence has prompted calls for increased security and community vigilance to protect residents from these dangerous criminals.
