The Mukono High Court has sentenced Dr. Mathew Kirabo to 30 years in Prison for murdering his girlfriend Desire Mirembe on July 10, 2015 and body dumped in a sugarcane plantation in Lugazi.

The judgement was delivered on November 21, 2023, by Justice Stanley Kaweesa who found Kirabo guilty of murder.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) which was represented by Chief State Attorneys, Happiness Ainebyona and Emily Ninsiima demanded the highest sentence which is a death penalty on behalf of the deceased.

They argued that the defendant cruelly ended the deceased’s life yet she had a long and brilliant future ahead of her, adding that, the convict, however, continued with his education and eventually graduated to become a physician.

The convict’s attorney, Henry Kunya, requested kindness on Kirabo’s behalf, pointing to them that at 32, he was a first-time criminal. Additionally, Kunya contended that incidental evidence supported the case.

While in court, Kirabo who maintained his innocence offered condolences to Mirembe’s family for the loss of a promising child, adding that, during his time on bail as a doctor, he was able to save many lives in the accident and emergency Unit at Mulago Hospital and the Maternity Unit in Mulago Kawempe Hospital.

In May 2022, Justice Henry Kawesa convicted Kirabo who was a fugitive then of murder following a months-long trial in his absentia. Kirabo was later arrested in September in Nairobi, Kenya where he was hiding.