By Our Reporter
Police has issued a 3-day ultimatum to assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Siraje Bakaleke to report to the police headquarters in Naguru or be declared a deserter.
Bakaleke, a former regional police commander Kampala Metropolitan area is said to have gone absent from work without leave (AWOL) from his duty station in October 2018. Now the police have issued instructions to the district police commander of Buyende, to search for Bakaleke at his father’s home in Innuula village, Bugaya sub-county and advise him to report himself before November 25, 2018.
According to a message signed by ACP Moses Muluya which declared Bakaleke as AWOL, the search for Bakaleke should be treated as urgent.
“ACP Siraje Bakaleke has been reported missing since October 2018. DPC Buyende is required to check for him at the home of Matyama Amuza of Inuula village…. and advise the same to report back for duty by 25/11/2018 or else be declared a deserter,” reads the message in part.
Bakaleke was suspended from duty in May 2018 to pave way for investigations into his alleged role to defraud of Shs 1.4 billion from two South Korean nationals. Charges of fraud, kidnap and abuse of office were sanctioned against Bakaleke and nine other suspects and the case was taken to court in September 2018.
He’s accused alongside lawyer Paul Wanyoto Mugoya, Nabeta Samuel Mulowooza, the managing director of Eye Power Engineering Company and police officers Robert Munezero, Innocent Nuwagaba, Robert Ray Asiimwe, Junior Amanya, Babu Gastavas and Kenneth Zirintuusa.
The group is implicated in the alleged extortion of Shs 1.4 billion from two South Korean nationals; Park Seunghoon and Jang Shingu Un who came to Uganda looking for gold, early this year. But the South Koreans were arrested from Acacia Mall in Kampala; where they were due to meet their lawyer Wanyoto.
Reports indicate that on the day of the meeting, the dealers were surrounded by security operatives, put at gunpoint and asked to hand over the money in their possession. A total of Shs 1.4 billion was handed over to the police officers before the two South Koreans were arrested and detained at Katwe police station. They were later told that they were facing terrorism charges and would be deported.
It later turned out that the deployment had been sanctioned by Bakaleke after a tipoff from the lawyer who indicated that two of his clients were involved in dubious activities and he had a suspicion that they were financial terrorists.
The police officers reportedly bought two air tickets with Emirates airlines using some of the extorted money. But they missed the flight, creating confusion among the plotters of the deportation. They hurriedly bought new tickets with Rwanda Air but were netted before the South Koreans boarded the plane.
