Police Flying Squad in Busoga East have arrested three men accused of posing as Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) enforcement officers and robbing Shs16.5 million from Joel Mubiru, a fisherman from Mayuge District.
The three suspects, who are currently detained at Iganga Central Police Station, are Charles Wakabi, Musa Musoke, and Hassan Bakakyi.
Their arrest follows a month-long tracking and investigation after the victim, Mubiru, reported the case to the police.
According to his statement, Wakabi contacted him first and introduced himself as a URA enforcement officer for the Busoga sub-region. He reportedly informed Mubiru about a purported URA auction of fishing nets seized from tax defaulters, offering them at prices far below market value.
The two agreed to physically meet at a URA checkpoint in Umbercoat-Mbulamuti-Bumbercoat, en route to the new bridge. The second meeting happened at the URA offices in Jinja City.
They then agreed to check into a hotel room to finalize the deal. It was there that Wakabi and his accomplices allegedly held Mubiru at gunpoint, forcing him to surrender Shs16.5 million.
After robbing him, they locked him inside the room, where he was later rescued by hotel staff. The staff alerted the police, who kicked off investigations that led to the arrest of the three suspects from their hideout in Silver Ward, Northern Division, Iganga Municipality.
The police said investigations are ongoing to establish the entire scheme of their robbery.
