“Stop wasting courts time” roared the magistrate as a so called expert hired by Pastor Jackson Ssenyonga through his lawyers Ojambo and Ojambo Advocates struggled to testify.
The expert whose role was to authenticate the Evidence that was allegedly in the Phone of Reagan Ssentongo, one of the suspects ended up testifying like he was one of the suspects rather than giving expert testimony. He read rather than analysed.

Mwanga II Court today heard from defense witness number nine in the ongoing case involving youths accused of tarnishing the image of Pastor Robert Kayanja.

Enoch Kanene, a certified digital forensic examiner with the Naguru Cyber Crime Department, highlighted several underlying issues found on the phone of the key suspect, Reagan Ssentongo. Acting on a court order to search for keywords such as “sodomy,” Kanene presented a detailed report that further exposed gaps in the suspects’ evidence.

One screenshot from Ssentongo’s phone contained a message alleging that Pastor Kayanja ordered the killing of a brother, Ashraf Mayanja, who had reportedly opted out of alleged sodomy practices. Notably, this murder allegation has never been filed with the police in years. The fact that no relatives or friends raised an alarm remains a shocking point of contention in the pursuit of justice.

One of the messages table read ” These boys whom you used are still demanding their balance but I have been calling you in vain. They are preparing to attack the church, please tell me what to do.”

A reply from a number registered in Pastor Kayanja’s name stated: “Let them wait. No one comes to church anymore because of Covid. They will receive 300k each. Stay safe, people are dying.”

While Pastor Kayanja previously admitted under oath that the suspects were former employees demanding salary arrears at that time, the defense’s narrative, positing these payments as being for sodomy, was characterized as a wild and unfounded claim.

During the proceedings, State Attorney Jonathan Muwangya objected to the tactics used by defense lawyer Bernard Mugenyi, accusing him of leading the witness.

“Your honour, let the expert walk us through his report. What the defense is doing is leading, which is not okay. He is taking him up and down, wasting time and building a misleading narrative,” Muwangya submitted.

In some scenarios the defense lawyers tried to force the expert into concocting evidence by misleading him to which he bluntly refused.

Case in point was in a testimony when a video was shown with some of the youth displaying blood on their behinds. However non of the faces was shown and nor was this so called evidence given to police. In fact some reliable sources revealed that the youth used chicken blood to smear on their behinds in an attempt to black mail Kayanja.

Magistrate Adams Byarugaba intervened to settle the heated exchange, cautioning the defense against wasting time. “Take the guidance of the court and be specific with your examination. Name the page and exactly what you want the expert to explain so that we save time,” the Magistrate ordered.

After a brief recess, the defense asked the expert to play audio files found on the phone. Two audios, sent by an individual named Kalungi to Ssentongo, featured a voice that sounded like Pastor Kayanja’s. However, when questioned by the State regarding authenticity, the expert stated he could not establish their origin. “Their authenticity is wanting, as they were not in their original form as saved,” Kanene noted.

Tensions rose when a suspect named Jamil was accused of illegally recording the expert while he was on the stand. Magistrate Byarugaba immediately halted proceedings and ordered Jamil to surrender his phone. Upon inspection, the Magistrate directed him to switch the device off, reiterating that recording court proceedings is strictly prohibited.

The State further noted that only the defense had attempted to record the session, warning that any leaked audio would be attributed to them. This follows a standing court order from last year barring the recording of witness proceedings.

Background and Prior Convictions

The case involves Ssentongo and co-accused Sserugo, Labib Khalifa, Alex Wakamala, and Martin Kagolo. It was previously alleged that Ssenyonga’s bodyguard, Isreal Waiswa, and Personal Assistant, Aggrey Kanene, took the young men for a medical checkup which yielded negative results, a fact the police doctor confirmed under oath.

Observations were also made regarding suspects appearing “coached” to testify without swearing oaths. Furthermore, it should be recalled that in 2022, Reagan Ssentongo and Khalifa Labib, both former workers at Pastor Kayanja’s farm in Kiryandongo, were sentenced to six years for aggravated robbery and assault. They are currently seeking bail at the Masindi High Court before Judge Issa Sserunkuuma.