The territorial police in the Rwizi region, Mbarara district, has arrested three suspects for the brutal murder of an 18-year-old year-old senior six vacist and her mother.

According to a statement issued on January 9, 2023, the deceased were identified as Ruth Ainembabazi, an 18-year-old S.6 vacist, and her mother Francisco Bashaba, 49, who died on the night of January 5, 2024, at Nsiika cell, Ntura parish, Mbarara district.

SCP Fred Enanga, the police spokesperson, stated that, facts gathered indicate that the mother, in the company of her daughter, went to visit her brother in Nsiika cell, when she received a call from her husband Deus Musinguzi, aged 55, who she was not in good terms with, asking about their whereabouts.

“The duo later returned to their home, but since then, they were not seen until January 6, 2024, when residents got concerned and checked their house, and they found the two victims dead. Both their heads smashed with a blunt object,” Enanga stated.

Enanga said that police were informed, and three suspects, including Bashaba’s husband, Deus Musinguzi, her step son Julius Ainemukama, 25, and her co-wife Rosemary Kyohairwe, 50, were arrested.

According to police, an existing family wrangle, the suspects having been the last persons to call the victims prior to their death, and the suspects acting in a ‘suspicious manner’, all led to the arrests.

Police strongly condemn murders within domestic settings and urge spouses to always have respect for each other and avoid taking the law in their hands. Investigations into the matter are ongoing.