Court has remanded eight people accused of attempting to murder Energy minister Mary Goretti Kitutu and her family members.
The suspects are Nathan Wanda, John Mugoya, Emmanuel Wanzira, Samuel Muhulo, Manuel Kimenya, Rose Muzaki, Irene Neumbe, and Emmanuel Kitono.
They are charged with threatening violence, conspiracy to commit a crime, cyber harassment and cyber stalking.
This group appeared before Buganda Road Court Magistrate Marion Mangeni and denied the charges.
Court remanded them after the State Prosecutor, Mr Ivan Kyazze, submitted that inquiries into their case were still ongoing.
The magistrate adjourned the case to July 21 for bail application.
Prosecution contends that the accused persons between May 22 and June 11 in Mbale and Kampala with intent to intimidate and annoy Ms Kitutu, threatened to kill her and wilfully conspired as a group to commit the said crime.
On the count of cyber harassment, it is stated that they wilfully and unlawfully sent repeated messages to her threatening to harm her.
They allegedly did it maliciously through electronic communication to harass the minister and her family to feel unsafe.
Police records indicate that most of these accused persons were arrested in Nkoma in Mbale District near the minister’s home.
At the beginning of this month, two detectives, Assistant Inspector of Police Emmanuel Mawa and Sgt Dick Magara, who were transporting one of the suspects, a one Phillip Wanambwa, linked to the assassination plot from Mbale to Kampala perished in a road accident at Magamaga Trading Centre on Jinja-Iganga highway. The suspect Wanambwa also died.
At the time of the accident, Wanambwa was being returned to Kampala after he had identified his accomplices, Kimenya and Muhulo.
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Monitor