Grief, as people in Sembabule district wake up with sad new of murder of Isa Mailane

Police in Greater Masaka are investigating circumstances under which a livestock dealer in Sembabule District was strangled and his body dumped near Nabajjuzi Swamp at Katigondo Village along Masaka –Villa Maria-Sembabule Road.

David Mushabe, 30, has been a livestock dealer in the Nabitanga Sub County, Sembabule District for the last five years, dealing mostly in cattle and goats.

According to Mr Vincent Kariisa who had traveled with the deceased last Thursday, he left Mushabe in Kampala after selling all his goats and returned to Sembabule on Saturday. Mushabe had reportedly remained with few goats to sell at Kyengera shambles.

“ Mushabe had taken 18 heads of cattle and 40 goats, all worth about Shs 60million, and by the time I left Kampala, he had remained with only six goats at Kyengera, which he planned to sell the following  morning,” Mr Kariisa said.

He said that before leaving Kampala, he contacted Mushabe on phone and he told him that he was to travel back to Sembabule on Saturday after selling all his goats.

Mr George Ssekikuubo, a councilor representing Nyabitanga Sub County in Sembabule District said  the deceased’s wife told  him that Mushabe called her on Saturday evening and said he had set off from Kampala. However, he never made it home.

“Mushabe’s wife told me they talked at around 6pm on Saturday and he informed her that he was on his way to Sembabule, but she waited in and all in vain. When she tried contacting him at around 8pm, all his telephone numbers were switched off,” she said.

Ssekikuubo said as they were searching for Mushabe on Sunday, they heard a police announcement on a local radio station indicating that there was unidentified male adult whose body had been dumped near Nabajjuzi swamp at Katigondo Village.

“We went to Masaka Central Police Station before we were taken to Masaka Regional Referral hospital mortuary where we found Mushabe’s body,” he said.

 Masaka Regional Police spokesperson, Mr Muhammad Nsubuga told this reporter that police are hunting for the assailants as investigations continue.

“We were tipped off by residents that unknown people had dumped a dead body in their area. We recovered the body and took it to Masaka Regional Referral hospital for postmortem,” he said.

He cautioned livestock dealers against traveling with hard cash which exposes them to so many risks, especially robbery.

Mr Vincent Ssensayi, the chairperson  Ntuusi Livestock Traders Association, asked police  to offer protection to livestock dealers, saying they have lately become a target of robbery.