A Ugandan police officer, who was caught on CCTV shooting a man in a banking hall has been arrested at Kenya -Uganda border attempting to flee.
In the video, the suspectConstable Ivan Wabwire, 30, is seen shooting and killing Uttam Bhandari, the director of a money-lending company TFS Financial Services on Friday, May 12.
In a statement from the Ugandan Police Force, Wabwire was arrested in Busia District on Sunday where he was been tracked for 42 hours by teams from the Flying Squad Unit and the territorial police in Busia.
Busia’s Police Commander Didas Byaruhanga, who was leading the operation , reported that Wabwire was planning to meet his lover at the Busia-Kenya County Stadium before he was apprehended.
“On 14 May 23 at around 0700 hours, Wabwire Ivan was arrested in Busia Municipality at Customs by a joint team commanded by the DPC Busia SP Didas Byaruhunga,” reads a statement by the Uganda Police Force.
His Escape
According to the Monitor, after the shooting, the police constable is said to have gone to the Kampala Central Police Station where he handed in his AK-47 gun and changed to his civilian clothes.
He then boarded a motorbike to Bweyogerere taxi stage on the Kampala-Ninja highway, where he boarded a taxi to Jinja City.
Arriving in Jinja, The Monitor quotes its source , he is said to have met with his sister who gave him transport to Busia.
Police officers who had been tracking him through phone calls he was making to his lover got word that he had tried crossing into Kenya twice but failed and chose to stay in Arubaine Village where officers were stationed.
The Monitor’s sources reveals that Wabwire’s lover was arrested shortly after he committed the crime but he switched off his phone after suspecting that their conversation was being listened to.
His Capture
It was until he switched on his phone to arrange the meet up at the County Stadium, that officers corned him and arrested him.
The Uganda police state that Wabwire , who had been banned from handling firearms over a medical condition, had picked his roommate’s gun which he used to commit the murder.
“Due to limited accommodation, the suspect was sharing a house with a fellow police officer, on May 12,23 his housemates had worked at night and didn’t return the gun to the Armory instead he went with it to their house and shortly, he got a call that his child was sick,, he rushed to go and check on the child leaving the gun behind,” reads the statement.
The roommate has been arrested, Wabwire Ivan is currently being held at CPS Busia pending transfer to CPS Kampala.
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