Buganda Road Chief Magistrates court remanded Daniel Silungo, a security guard with Seracen Security Company Limited, to Luzira Prison on murder charges.
Silungo, 30, a resident of Naguru in Nakawa Division, Kampala, appeared before Chief Magistrate Ronald Kayizzi and was charged with the murder of Hassan Solomon Ntambi.
Since murder is a capital offence punishable by death upon conviction, the magistrate did not allow Silungo to enter a plea. Instead, he advised him to apply for bail in the High court, which has jurisdiction over such cases. The court remanded him until March 4, 2025, as investigations continue.
According to the prosecution, on February 19, 2025, Silungo, with malice aforethought, unlawfully killed Ntambi at Mukwano Arcade in Central Division, Kampala.
In his statement, Silungo admitted to shooting Ntambi following a dispute over blocking a car. He claimed that Ntambi refused to move and, when confronted, he grabbed the gun butt. Silungo, who had been on permanent night duty since 2023, stated that Ntambi punched him, prompting him to shoot him in the stomach at close range. He then surrendered to the police at Mini Price.
Court records indicate that Mini Price officer-in-charge ASP Joseph Muliika was alerted by police constable Gerald Isabirye, who had received information from crime intelligence officer Sgt Faridah Nampiima about the shooting. Muliika and Isabirye responded to the scene, initially registering a case of attempted murder, which was later upgraded to murder.
The shooting occurred in front of Shop 30, owned by Nogga Allan, the employer of the deceased. An unidentified boda boda rider rushed Ntambi to Mengo Hospital.
Police documented the crime scene and recovered the firearm, which was loaded with four live rounds. The weapon was handed over to detective AIP Henry Ojolo, the scene-of-crime officer.
Gun violence remains a pressing concern in Uganda, involving both state-sanctioned and privately owned firearms. The most recent incident occurred during the Kawempe North by-election nominations, where security forces injured several people, including Top TV journalist Ibrahim Miracle, whose face was severely disfigured.
Earlier, on January 30, 2025, a shooting at Shumuk Aluminium Limited in Nakawa Division left three people dead, including the shooter. Emmanuel Machugayi, a security guard with Ryayo Security Group Ltd, fatally shot his colleagues, Ashiraf Kakyebezi, 21, and Stephen Owechi, before turning the gun on himself.
When growing up in the 60s and 70s, Daytime Security Guards were only armed with a button. And the Night Guards, were armed with Bows and Arrows; and nobody got killed in disagreement with “Securiko” guards as they generally known.
In other words, what is a better weapon for security guards; the simple wooden, which is less than a Kg, bows and arrows or the GUN? Well in our distorted sense of BETTER the automatic weapons like the AK47 are BETTER for killing.