The murder trial of businessman Francis Onebe has hit a roadblock due to the absence of the judge overseeing the case.
When the case was brought up for mention on Wednesday, it was adjourned to May 27, 2024. This delay occurred because the trial judge, Michael Elubu, is currently concluding the trial of Thomas Kwoyelo in Gulu.
During the previous session, Charles Okello, the former manager of Pentagon Security Company, denied allegations that he was involved in a plot to murder his sister, Immaculate Mary Blessing Aiso. Okello was responding to questions from defense lawyers in the case where Francis Onebe stands accused of killing his wife, Aiso.
Onebe is facing charges of murder alongside security guard Bonny Oriekot.
“In a statement recorded from Gerald Abaasi, it is alleged that on September 30, 2020, you met with Brian Kwezira and orchestrated a plan to kill your sister,” counsel Patrick Kasumba posed to Okello, who vehemently denied the accusation.
Kasumba was supported by lawyers David Oluka and Joshua Emorut.
Abaasi’s statement was recorded by investigating officer Jacob Okello, who was then attached to the Criminal Investigations Directorate’s Kibuli headquarters.
On March 21, 2024, Okello informed the court, presided over by Elubu, that he did not know Kwezira, the executive director of Kwizera Bus Company. Okello also refuted allegations that he paid 150 million shillings to individuals, including Kwezira, to murder Aiso.
The court heard that Aiso was strangled to death, and her body was covertly brought to her matrimonial home in Munyonyo.
Background information reveals that Onebe, 63, an accountant by profession, is accused of murdering Aiso and later dumping her body in a septic tank. The charge of murder carries a maximum penalty of death upon conviction.
Both Onebe and Oriekot, his security guard, have spent over two years on remand at Luzira Prison after being denied bail twice.
In January 2021, Onebe reported his wife missing at Buziga Police Post, claiming that she was taken away by plainclothes operatives in a ‘drone’ to an unknown location. However, a week later, her body was discovered in a septic tank at their residence by a joint security team led by the Crime Investigation Department of the Police Force.
Police investigations suggest that Onebe and his wife had a history of disputes, and they had reunited after 14 years of separation before her murder.
Following a police inquiry, Onebe was arrested and charged with his wife’s murder before the Makindye Chief Magistrates Court. He was later transferred to the High Court for trial after investigations were completed.
According to the Director of Public Prosecutions, Onebe and Aiso had a disagreement over sorcery, which ultimately led to her demise.
