The High Court in Kampala has sentenced former street kid Musa Musasizi to a 134-year jail term for the murder of five women in Nakulabye and Kasubi suburbs of Kampala City within one month in 2021. His victims included his girlfriend, Mackline Ahereza, Violet Kansiime, her three-month-old baby, Nourine Nabirye, and Elizabeth Muteesi.

Following Musasizi’s plea of guilty to strangling most of his victims and setting their bodies ablaze, the Criminal Division Judge Margaret Mutonyi passed the sentence. Musasizi, aged 25, was convicted in July 2023, pending sentencing.

The court heard that after murdering Ahereza, Musasizi packed her body into a suitcase, hired a boda-boda rider named Abdul Kasajja to transport it to Nateete’s Kitooro zone, and set it ablaze using paraffin he purchased from Kobil Pump station.

He then sold Ahereza’s phone for 15,000 Shillings, leading investigators to track and apprehend him. Musasizi confessed to murdering Ahereza and several other girls, disposing of their bodies at different locations, and discarding their belongings, including shoes, necklaces, and bags, in a pit latrine, which the Police fire unit later retrieved. His co-accused, Kasajja, was previously sentenced to a four-year imprisonment term for being an accessory after the fact.

During Musasizi’s trial, the prosecution sought the death penalty, while his lawyer, Zephaniah Zzimbe, appealed for mercy, citing his client’s upbringing on the streets. Consequently, Lady Justice Mutonyi sentenced Musasizi to cumulative jail terms of 35, 32, 27, 40 years, and 21 months, respectively, rejecting the death or life sentence as he couldn’t pay for each murder with his life.

Comparing Musasizi to a character from a 1956 movie, the judge expressed concern over potential victims’ safety, citing his targeted approach through romantic relationships. She emphasized his lack of mental illness but rather a calculated nature, urging his long-term incarceration to protect young girls. The judge advised Musasizi to consider appealing against the sentence if dissatisfied, clarifying that his conviction was based on his guilty plea.

Additionally, Musasizi confessed to investigators from the Crime Intelligence, Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence –CMI and Police detectives that he picked all the women from Makerere Kivuulu, had sexual intercourse with them at his rented house in Nakulabye, then strangled them. Ahereza, whom he dated when she was three months pregnant and had been abandoned by her boyfriend, became his first victim. Musasizi suspected her of other relationships, leading to her murder.

He also confessed to killing Ahereza’s three-month-old baby, revelling in the act and relishing the victims’ struggles for life after intercourse. “I stuffed the baby’s body in a laptop bag and I dumped it near Bativa hotel. I enjoyed killing these women after having sex with them. It was interesting seeing them fighting to keep their life,” Musasizi is quoted by a detective in his statement.

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