Advertisement
Police in Masaka District are holding a maid accused of killing a six-month-old baby under her care.
Mr
Muhammad Nsubuga, the acting Southern Regional police spokesperson,
said police received complaints from Ms Claudius Nyafono, the mother of
the baby at 4pm on Wednesday that her maid had disappeared with her
baby, Kyle Kollope.
Ms Nyafono is a staff at Auditor General’s
regional office in Masaka and a resident of Kirumba A, Katwe -Butego
Division Masaka Municipality.
“We received a complaint from Ms
Nyafono at around 4pm yesterday [Wednesday] that the maid had
disappeared with the baby. We searched the house, unfortunately, we
found the minor dead, wrapped in the blanket and the suspect had fled
the scene,” he said.
The suspect is aged 15 years, according to Mr Nsubuga.
He
said postmortem report from Masaka Regional Referral Hospital had
revealed that the toddler died from strangulation which caused internal
bleeding thus damaging liver and the lungs.
“Police started the hunt
and before mid-night the suspect was arrested from where she was hiding
in Kirumba and brought her to Masaka Central Police Station. She will be
arraigned in court and charged with murder once we are done with the
investigations, “he said.
A police detective at Masaka Central Police Station who preferred anonymity because is not authorised to speak to the media us that during interrogation, the suspect denied strangling the toddler.
“She told us that when they were at home, strangers raided the house and on seeing them, she locked herself inside one of the rooms, leaving the baby in the living room. She insisted that the baby was strangled by the unknown assailants,” the detective said.
Mr Jerome Chrysestom, a relative of Nyafono said the latter got the maid through a friend at a local Pentecostal Church in Mbale District and knows little about her family background.
“So, she [Nyafono] decided to move with her to Masaka here to take care of the baby and it is unfortunate that she ended up killing the toddler,” he said.
Ms Josephine Nampijja, a neighbour said on the fateful day, she saw the maid passing near her home holding a hand bag at around 2pm and never looked frightened.
“She [maid] usually passes in front of my home here and yesterday [Wednesday] at 2 pm she did the same and I thought it was normal until police and Ms Nyafono came with sad news that the maid had strangled the baby,” she said.
