Staff Reporter
Police in Mitooma District have arrested former Mitooma Town Council Mayor Alfred Mugarura on allegations of child sacrifice.
The incident occurred on August 6, 2024, in Mitooma Town Council, Mitooma District. Mugarura, along with a District Engineer named Tuto Tumwine, is accused of sacrificing an 11-month-old baby, Jessen Atwine. The child was reportedly the offspring of one of Mugarura’s bar workers.
According to Marcial Tumusiime, the Greater Bushenyi Police spokesperson, Mugarura, a prominent businessman in Mitooma who owns Moonlight Bar and Side View Motel, was constructing a building at Moonlight Bar when the incident happened. Tumusiime confirmed that both Mugarura and Tumwine were arrested by security operatives.
Christopher Atwine, the father of the child, reported that the baby went missing from one of the rooms at Moonlight Bar. After a search, the child’s body was found discarded in the compound, prompting the family to report the matter to the police.
Mitooma Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Francis Kibuka Amooti condemned the act, confirming that the information they have suggests the possibility of child sacrifice.
At the child’s burial, Nyambwoha David, Chairperson of Ward IV Division, reported that the initial postmortem conducted at Mitooma Health Centre IV was inconclusive. Consequently, a second postmortem at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital confirmed that the child had sustained a head injury, which was inflicted to allow the flow of blood from the body.
