The police have initiated a search for a mother named Justin Namuleme, who stands accused of kidnapping her own son in an attempt to extort Shs 4 million from her husband.
Five-year-old Adrian Wansireko disappeared from his family’s residence in Nansana, Wakiso district, last week. Shortly afterward, Namuleme informed her husband, Stephen Wasinga, that their son had been abducted by unidentified individuals.
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In response, Wasinga promptly reported a child kidnapping case, and this information was disseminated to all police stations in the Kampala Metropolitan North region.
However, Wasinga was in for a shock when he discovered a letter on their doorstep, demanding that he send Shs 4 million if he wanted to secure his son’s safe return.
“When I returned from the police station, I found a letter instructing me to send Shs 4 million to ensure the release of my son. The letter explicitly warned against involving the police. Nevertheless, I returned to the police to report this new development,” Wasinga recounted.
The police advised Wasinga to bring his wife to the police station to clarify how their child had been kidnapped from home, especially since they had been alone together at the time.
“I did not witness the individuals who took our son because he was in the yard. It seems these individuals were nearby and closely monitoring my movements. I implore my husband to send the money to ensure our child’s safety,” Namuleme reportedly stated at the police station.
Luke Owoyesigyire, the deputy Kampala Metropolitan police spokesperson, disclosed that police officers decided to deceive the alleged kidnappers by requesting specific instructions on how to recover the child after sending the money.
During the initial attempt, it was discovered that the provided telephone number was not operational, which raised concerns for the child’s father.
“However, Wasinga was taken aback when his wife assured him not to worry, claiming that the telephone number would be active again shortly. Indeed, the number became operational, leaving the father perplexed. He immediately informed our officers about the situation,” Owoyesigyire said.
As police officers continued to question Namuleme, they became suspicious of how she knew that the telephone number would become active again in a few minutes, and indeed, the phone reconnected to the network.
“As the interrogation continued, she managed to escape through a back door. Shortly afterward, the child returned home and informed his father that his mother had placed him on a motorcycle that brought him back home. The wife has since fled, but we are actively searching for her,” Owoyesigyire stated.
Wasinga revealed that his wife had obtained numerous loans for undisclosed reasons, leading him to suspect that she had orchestrated the kidnapping as a means to extort money from him to repay these debts.
“We’ve noticed several people coming to our home inquiring about my wife and demanding money from her. I do not understand the reason for these loans, and now I am suspicious that she intended to acquire money through ransom to clear her debts,” Wasinga remarked.
Owoyesigyire noted that they are currently in pursuit of Namuleme and any potential accomplices, as it is evident that others were involved in keeping the child and providing the telephone number for the ransom.
“We want to caution individuals against using kidnapping as a means to extract money from spouses, family members, or friends. It is a criminal act, and anyone apprehended will face legal consequences,” Owoyesigyire warned.
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