The Joint Task Team of Police in Kasese, collaborating with the UPDF, CMI, UWA, and ISO, has detained Karungi Zainabu, a 32-year-old businesswoman, on suspicion of staging her own kidnapping to extort money from her relatives.
Karungi, a resident of Railway Cell in Kasese Municipality, also faces charges of providing false information to the police, as stated by Mr. Fred Enanga, the Uganda Police spokesperson.
Mr. Enanga, while addressing the media on Monday, revealed that the suspect, Karungi, allegedly fabricated her kidnapping on Friday, February 08, 2024. She purportedly called her mother, claiming that she and another female victim had been apprehended by eight armed men near Kikorongo within the Queen Elizabeth National Park, which was untrue.
“She claimed they were demanding money for her release, which was an unacceptable misuse of the National Park’s reputation,” Enanga stated.
“Utilizing advanced surveillance methods, the task team located her at her hiding place in a room on Margherita Street in Kasese Municipality and arrested her,” added the police spokesperson.
According to the police, Karungi appeared in court on Tuesday to face charges of providing false information to the police and staging her own kidnapping.
