Joan Kagezi Murder!! How Assassins Uses Black Magic Rituals To Protect Themselves From The Law
In the heart of Kayunga District, deep within the walls of a humble shrine, a ritual was performed nearly a decade ago—one not of healing, but of evasion. The men gathered there were not seekers of peace.
They were, according to court records, the orchestrators of one of Uganda’s most high-profile assassinations.
They had come to “tie the case.”
That phrase—uttered by confessed assassin Daniel Kisekka Kiwanuka and later echoed by the witchdoctor who performed the ritual—is now at the center of an explosive criminal case that intertwines brutal violence with Uganda’s enduring belief in the power of the supernatural.
What began as a cold-blooded assassination of a senior prosecutor has evolved into a story of conspiracy, money, fear—and mysticism.
The killing that stunned a nation
On the evening of March 30, 2015, Joan Namazzi Kagezi, Uganda’s Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, pulled her government-issued pickup truck over in Kiwatule to buy fruit for her children.
In the car with her were three of her children. As she stood beside the vehicle, two assailants on motorcycles approached, drew weapons, and opened fire.
Kagezi collapsed—shot dead in front of her children. The killers sped off into the dark.
In an instant, Uganda lost one of its top prosecutors. Kagezi was known for taking on some of the country’s toughest cases—terrorism, war crimes, and corruption.
Her assassination sent a chilling message: no one, not even a government lawyer with state protection, was untouchable.
Murdered Prosecutor Joan Kagezi
For years, the case appeared to stagnate. Leads evaporated. Suspects vanished. But behind the scenes, the hunt continued.
The accused and a deadly pact
In 2023, progress finally came. Police arrested Massajjage John—also known as Mubiru Brian, Badru, or Chongo—in Wandegeya, where he had been living under the radar as a boda boda rider.
His arrest followed those of Kibuuka John alias Musa, Kisekka Daniel Kiwanuka, and Nasur Abdallah Mugonole, each picked up at different times and in connection with different crimes. Together, they would soon face trial for murder and terrorism.
According to confessions and witness testimonies presented during pre-trial hearings, the assassination was no random act.
It was planned, funded, and coordinated—allegedly from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the guns used in the attack were sourced.
Massajjage reportedly bragged that the hit was a “deal” worth USD 200,000, and that a deposit had been paid. Part of that money, he claimed, went toward hiring a witchdoctor.
The mission was simple: carry out the murder and then “tie the case.”
The ritual to ‘tie the case’
The idea of “tying” a case through witchcraft isn’t new in Uganda. In many communities, rituals are believed to offer protection against misfortune—or in this case, prosecution. But this was no ordinary invocation of ancestral spirits.
In his statement to investigators, Kisekka Daniel Kiwanuka confessed that shortly after the murder, he, along with Kibuuka John and Nasur Abdallah Mugonole, travelled to Kayunga to meet a witchdoctor known for his power.
“A1 further revealed that he, together with A2 and A4 went to a witch doctor in Kayunga to perform rituals on them to protect and prevent them from being arrested for the murder of the deceased,” the court ruling states.
The witchdoctor, now imprisoned for unrelated defilement charges, corroborated the confession. He remembered the men well:
“They informed him that they had committed a very big case and they wanted him to help them ‘tie the case.’ He performed rituals on them and they paid him Uganda Shillings Two Hundred Thousand only (UGX 200,000),” the ruling reads.
The Joan Kagezi murder suspects appearing before Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court in 2023
To eliminate any doubt, police conducted an identification parade. The witchdoctor picked out Kiwanuka, Kibuuka, and Mugonole without hesitation.
“An identification parade was conducted at police and the witch doctor identified A1, A2 and A4.”
Evidence beyond the shrine
The prosecution didn’t rely on confessions and spiritual accounts alone. Mobile phone data showed that Kibuuka John and Massajjage John were within Kiwatule between 7:00 and 7:30 PM on the night Kagezi was killed. This timing matched eyewitness accounts of the shooting.
Investigators also reconstructed the crime scene and collected ballistic and forensic evidence. Sketches, bullet casings, mobile network records, and witness statements were all presented during pre-trial hearings.
Kisekka Daniel Kiwanuka detailed the escape plan, the motorbikes used, and the roles each man played. He described how he and Nasur Abdallah Mugonole served as a backup team to clear the escape route after Kibuuka John and Massajjage John executed the attack.
Why Joan Kagezi?
The motive behind the murder appears as complex as it is sinister. Justice Alice Komuhangi Khaukha found that the attack on Kagezi was both political and symbolic:
“A brutal armed attack on a senior Government official, actively handling high-profile prosecutions… was intended to send a message to the Government. It also goes without saying that the attack created a lot of fear in the public.”
The court ruled that the assassination met the threshold of terrorism under Ugandan law: it was meant to influence government operations and intimidate the public, carried out with “malice aforethought” and for “economic, political, or social aims.”
An organized effort—and a spiritual insurance policy
In confirming the charges, Justice Komuhangi emphasized the level of coordination among the accused—and the role the witchdoctor played in that conspiracy.
“The Prosecution has disclosed sufficient evidence to prove this ingredient [of obstruction] to the required standard,” the judge ruled.
She noted that the use of spiritual rituals, far from being a separate matter, was part of a broader and highly organized criminal enterprise. The fact that the accused evaded arrest for nearly eight years, she wrote, “is further evidence of their high level of organisation and [that they] are not merely ordinary criminals.”
Justice and belief collide
This case, now cleared for full trial, is a study in contrasts. It blends the cold precision of criminal conspiracy with the raw belief in spiritual power. It exposes how, in moments of desperation, even killers may seek divine intervention—not to repent, but to hide.
It also speaks to a legal system now forced to reckon with the enduring influence of the occult in criminal cases. The question is no longer whether such beliefs exist—but how they are used to manipulate reality, obscure guilt, and challenge the reach of the law.
