Suspected human trafficker netted

Suspected Human Trafficker Stephen Kuremu

The Police early this week arrested Stephen Kuremu, the former LCIII Chairman of Bukiabi Sub County, Namisindwa district, who is accused of trafficking a woman to Oman in the Middle East in September 2018. The woman, Catherine Nambereke, lost her life in April 2019 after reportedly being poisoned by her employers.

The Sunrise, in the previous issue quoted a human rights activist, Mariam Mwiza, alleging that Kuremu was being shielded from facing the law by Namisindwa Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Moses Kigai and the District Police Commander (DPC) Livingstone Ssendikadiwa, which the DPC denied. The story was titled “Human Trafficking: Tracing the Route of Death via the Infamous Lwakhakha Border.”

Ssendikadiwa told The Sunrise that Kuremu was arrested on July 14.

“He was arrested after our intelligence tipped us on his hideouts,” he said.  Kuremu is at Mbale Central Police Station (CPS) facing investigations.

ASP Charles Atwine, the Criminal Investigations and Crime Intelligence Directorate (CID) Spokesperson, said on Wednesday that they had already sent a team of investigators to Mbale from Kampala.

“If we establish the evidence we shall send the file to the Director Public Prosecution and he [Kuremu] will be produced in to court,” Atwine said.

Atwine said the directorate would also investigate whether Nambereke died of poison as alleged.

“But this will require our two governments of Uganda and Oman to work together in order to establish the truth,” he added.

If he is found guilty, Kuremu will be charged under the 2009 Anti-trafficking Act which criminalizes sex and labor trafficking with punishments for imprisonment up to 15 years.

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