The Buganda Road Court has given the Kampala Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago, until February 13 to produce Pastor David Ngabo’s wife, Sandra Katebalirwe, in court, pay sh50m or be jailed at Luzira Prisons. Lukwago stood surety for Katebalirwe, who jumped bail and has a warrant of arrest hanging over her head for declining to turn up in court eight times.
The Buganda Road grade one Magistrate, Robert Mukanza, yesterday also gave a last chance to other sureties; Benon Mugerwa and Henry Ssempigga, who were also not in court. Their lawyer, Steven Senkeenzi, informed court that Mugerwa and Ssempigga did not attend court because they were tipped that the accused person was spotted around Mbarara, so they had gone to trace her.
He also told court that Lukwago was not able to attend court because there is a cholera outbreak in Kampala, so he was attending meetings. The senior state attorney, Jonathan Muwaganya, asked court to issue a warrant of arrest against Lukwago, saying he has never appeared in court and an international warrant of arrest against Katebalirwe be extended.
“We pray that leave be granted for prosecution to publish the warrant of arrest to the accused person with her photograph in the national newspapers to call upon the public to trace her,” he requested.
The magistrate extended Katebalirwe’s international warrant of arrest and gave a last chance to the three sureties and adjourned the case to February 13. Katebalirwe appeared before Buganda Road Chief Magistrate, James Ereemye, in 2017 on charges of fleecing a Chinese national of sh200m.
She was charged with obtaining money by false pretence, forgery and uttering false documents. She denied all the charges. The accused vanished when the trial was in advanced stages, awaiting judgment.