The High Court has sentenced two people to death and handed life imprisonment to seven others after convicting them over the 2018 kidnap and murder of Kampala businesswoman Susan Magara.
Justice Alex Mackay Ajiiji sentenced Hajara Nakandi and Musa Abaas Buwembo to death, while the remaining seven convicts received life sentences for their roles in the kidnap-for-ransom scheme that ended in Magara’s murder.
The court also ordered the confiscation and sale of land and vehicles believed to have been purchased using the ransom money. Justice Ajiiji directed that the proceeds from the sale be returned to Magara’s family, saying the convicts should not benefit from the crime.
According to evidence presented in court, Buwembo was responsible for cutting off Magara’s fingers, which were sent to her family to pressure them into paying a ransom. He was also found to have participated in her killing after she was allegedly injected with ketamine and suffocated with a plastic bag.
During sentencing, the prosecution urged the court to impose the maximum penalty, describing the crime as a carefully planned and exceptionally brutal operation motivated by financial gain.
State Attorney Joseph Kyomuhendo told the court that Magara was abducted on February 7, 2018, in Mengo, Kampala, and held captive for 20 days. Despite her family paying a ransom of 200,000 US dollars—worth about 700 million shillings at the time—the kidnappers killed her on February 27 before dumping her body in Kigo, Wakiso District.
The prosecution identified Yusuf Lubega as the alleged mastermind of the operation, saying he coordinated the kidnapping and, together with another convict, conducted surveillance on Magara before her abduction. Prosecutors argued that the group had several opportunities to abandon the crime but instead continued with their plan even after receiving the ransom.
The court also heard that the kidnappers mutilated Magara by cutting off two of her fingers and sending them, along with a video recording, to her family as part of their ransom demands.
Addressing the court before sentencing, Magara’s aunt, Flora Magara, said the family continues to live with the pain of losing their loved one and asked the court to impose the death penalty on those responsible.
The defence, led by lawyer Richard Kumbuga, appealed for leniency, arguing that the convicts were first-time offenders and that the court should consider the individual role played by each accused person. The defence also acknowledged the suffering Magara endured and expressed sympathy to her family, while noting that many of the convicts were breadwinners whose families would also be affected by lengthy sentences.
The nine convicts were found guilty of kidnapping with intent to obtain a ransom and the consequential murder of Susan Magara after the court ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Susan Magara’s abduction and murder remains one of Uganda’s most high-profile kidnap-for-ransom cases, drawing nationwide attention and renewed calls for stronger measures against organised criminal gangs.