Two people have been arrested for the alleged participation in the gruesome murder by hacking of a couple in Bukomansimbi district due to family land wrangles.
The arrest occurred on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, following the murder by hacking of Joseph Bukenya, aged 22 years, and Susan Namukasa, aged 19 years, on September 23, 2024, at around 3:00 am in Kyansi village, Butenga rural sub-county in Bukomansimbi district.
The arrested suspects have been identified as Deus Mugema, aged 20 years old and wife to Augusto Kabuye, the mastermind behind the couple’s death, and are currently held at Bukomansimbi police.
According to the Bukomansimbi Deputy RDC, Pax Fred Ssalongo Kalema, Kabuye is currently on the run; however, authorities are doing their best to capture him and other suspects.
’’Kabuye’s wife was arrested for being an accomplice; however, investigations are underway, and once Kabuye is arrested, he will be tried in court because currently he is the main suspect and mastermind behind the couple’s death,’’ he emphasized.
According to the locals, it is alleged that Mugema was paid by Kabuye to set fire on Bukenya’s house, which prompted Bukenya and his wife to run outside; however, when they reached outside, the assailants were waiting outside and hacked them to death.
The locals added that Bukenya was possibly murdered by Kabuye and Mugema due to some family land disputes that have been going on between the two parties.
’’Kabuye sold Bukenya a piece of land sometime back; however, when they got some misunderstandings, Kabuye has been threatening to cause him harm and forcefully evict him off the land even after Bukenya won the case against Kabuye in court,’’ the locals said.
Read Also: Machete-Wielding Thugs Kill Couple in Bukomansimbi over Land Dispute
During an interview with journalists on September 24, 2024, one of the locals identified as Ronald Kasita, a grandfather to Bukenya, disclosed that the deceased had informed some local leaders about his life being in danger due to the land wrangles between him and Kabuye; however, he was killed before being helped.
Kasita added that Bukenya was planning to relocate to Sembabule for the meantime until the land-wrangling issue between him and Kabuye had been solved.
’’It is a shame that Kabuye, who is a family member and uncle to Bukenya, hacked him and his wife so gruesomely like meat just because of a small argument between the two that could have been easily solved without death,’’ he revealed.
He noted that the two parties were best friends before all this saga, adding that when Kabuye sold the land that he had been trying to steal from Bukenya, he took the signed agreements to his father to keep them as evidence that Bukenya was the rightful owner of the said land.
Recent reports indicate a surge in violence linked to family land disputes in Bukomansimbi and surrounding districts. For instance, on September 16, 2024, a 50-year-old man identified as Umaru Nsubuga was attacked and stabbed to death while other family members were brutally injured.
