Kampala, Uganda – Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Nixon Agasirwe, a former top police commander already under investigation for the 2015 assassination of Senior Principal State Attorney Joan Namazzi Kagezi, is now facing further scrutiny in connection with a second high-profile killing: that of Eritrean businessman Daniel Weldu Okba Michael in 2016.
Investigators have broadened their probe after fresh leads linked Agasirwe to the kidnap and gruesome murder of Weldu, a wealthy investor and proprietor of Amma Company Limited. Weldu was abducted in Kampala and later killed across the Kenyan border in Busia.
The Abduction and Fraudulent Scheme
According to investigators, Weldu was kidnapped from his Bugolobi office on October 27, 2016, by a group led by an ex-convict known as Kazahura. The operation was allegedly carried out with help from rogue elements within both the Uganda Police Force and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF).
After his abduction, sources say Kazahura handed the businessman over to Nixon Agasirwe at his Kololo-based Special Operations Unit (SOU). There, Weldu was reportedly forced at gunpoint to sign documents authorizing the transfer of billions of shillings from his bank accounts. A fraudulent court order, signed by a chief magistrate in Kampala, was used to effect the transfers. Investigators believe city lawyers, bank employees, and security operatives all conspired in the plot, siphoning Weldu’s funds into accounts held by a law firm whose name is being withheld as inquiries continue.
Murder and Discovery
Weldu was then transported at night through the Busia border in a convoy led by now-convicted UPDF Captain Akeem Bumali Mangeni and other operatives from SOU. After crossing into Kenya, the victim was reportedly told to proceed to Eritrea, but during a struggle, he was shot dead. His body was dumped in a thicket, where it was discovered in a decomposed state days later.
Presidential Intervention and CMI Investigation
Weldu’s disappearance drew the attention of his family and the Eritrean diplomatic mission in Kampala. Dissatisfied with the initial police investigation, they petitioned President Yoweri Museveni, who instructed the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) to take over the case.
Using phone signal tracking, CMI operatives traced Weldu’s last known location to Agasirwe’s Kololo base. A subsequent search of the SOU premises revealed a shirt identified by Weldu’s girlfriend as one he wore on the day of his abduction.
Repercussions within Security Circles
The discovery sent shockwaves through security circles. Then-Inspector General of Police (IGP) Gen. Kale Kayihura, a close ally of Agasirwe, quickly moved to dismantle the Nalufenya-based Joint Operations Center (which housed Agasirwe’s unit) and replaced it with the Flying Squad. Gen. Kayihura also deployed police commandos to secure the premises amid fears that evidence would be destroyed.
In retaliation, Agasirwe allegedly sent out a hit squad that assassinated two police officers guarding the site. Police later arrested ten operatives formerly attached to Nalufenya, some of whom reportedly confessed to the double murder and gave detailed statements about Weldu’s fate.
Nixon Agasirwe’s latest interrogation over the murder of Joan Kagezi appears to have reignited attention on the Weldu file. Kagezi was gunned down in 2015 while prosecuting high-profile terrorism cases.
