A heavy silence cloaked the courtroom last week as Lady Justice Rosette Comfort Kania presided over one of the most gripping testimonies in recent memory. Detective SP Akongo Bibiana, the lead investigator in the Henry Katanga murder probe, took the stand for the second and third days of her testimony, delivering a chilling account of what she claimed was a deliberate, calculated effort to cover up a murder before authorities could act.
A House Full of Red Flags
Bibiana testified that her team arrived at the Katanga residence on November 2, 2023, following reports that businessman Henry Katanga had died from a gunshot wound. From the moment they stepped inside, she said, alarm bells began to ring. Inconsistencies in the statements of domestic workers quickly raised suspicion.
She recounted how `Dr.` Charles Otai and Patricia Kakwanza, Katanga’s daughter, were arrested on the spot—immediately after Detective ACP Bob Kagarura confronted Otai, warning him, “Do you know you’re speaking to a police officer?” That confrontation stemmed from overheard conversations between Otai and Patricia, allegedly coordinating a fabricated version of events.
Bibiana said her suspicions deepened when another staff member, George Amanyire, was arrested after he was discovered “mopping blood” from the scene. A second house helper, Nantume, was also detained after CCTV footage showed her cleaning downstairs during the crucial hours. When questioned, she claimed she had been summoned upstairs by Amanyire.
Chef Nuwahereza’s arrest followed soon after. He insisted he had stayed in the kitchen and was unaware of a body in the house. However, Bibiana noted that CCTV footage showed both Nuwahereza and Amanyire changing clothes during the early hours between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m.—precisely when the house routine had suddenly shifted and the surveillance cameras went dark.
“When the footage resumed, several people appeared in different clothes,” Bibiana said, concluding, “From what we saw, there was clearly a coordinated effort to change the scene. It was not natural.”
The A-PLUS Funeral Mystery
The plot thickened further with the unexplained arrival of A-PLUS Funeral Services. Bibiana said the funeral team showed up at the residence on the same morning—without police involvement. “Normally, funeral homes pick up bodies from police mortuaries, not private homes,” she testified.
Her intelligence team traced the call to A-PLUS to a man identifying himself as Dr. Otai, who instructed them to collect the body and take it to Bombo Military Hospital, falsely citing it as an accident. The contact number used for this request, Bibiana revealed, was later linked to Patricia Kakwanza.
She said she officially wrote to A-PLUS seeking verification. In a stamped letter dated November 18, 2023, the company confirmed that calls were made at 9:00 a.m. on November 2—before any officer had even arrived at the scene. The body was ultimately rerouted to the KCCA mortuary after police intervened and demanded a proper post-mortem.
Roadblocks at IHK
The day after the incident, November 3, Bibiana’s team moved to International Hospital Kampala (IHK) to interview Accused Number One—Molly Katanga, widow of the deceased. But there, they encountered yet another obstacle: Special Forces Command (SFC) soldiers guarding the ICU ward.
“They told us they had orders from a man named Geoffrey Kamuntu, who claimed to be Molly’s brother and next of kin,” Bibiana told the court.
When she finally gained access, the scene inside the ICU stunned her. Molly, allegedly in critical condition, was upright, texting on her phone, and surrounded by no life support machines. Sensing something was amiss, police deployed officers around the hospital, fearing a potential escape.
Their fears were not unfounded. Intelligence surfaced suggesting plans were underway to smuggle Molly out of the country through Kenya. Bibiana testified that Molly had even petitioned President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to permit her to travel for specialized treatment in Kenya. One night, officers discovered a long ladder positioned by Molly’s hospital window—claimed by IHK to be part of “renovations.”
When Molly underwent surgery that was supposed to last three hours, she stayed in theatre for over twelve. During police attempts to check on her, Kamuntu allegedly manhandled an officer, leading to a physical altercation and his arrest for obstructing justice.
Following these incidents, police alerted the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who involved the Ministry of Health. In January 2024—two months later—independent specialists confirmed that Molly was fit to give a statement, which she eventually did, with her legal team present.
Missing Footage, Blocked Access
Bibiana’s testimony also highlighted glaring gaps in the home’s CCTV records. While footage from November 1 captured Henry and Molly arriving home, critical segments from November 2—the day of his death—were missing.
Footage showing Molly leaving and the daughters returning was gone. Yet, electrical checks confirmed there had been no power outage that morning. This was further validated by Umeme, the national power distributor.
Police then obtained a court order to access electricity data from the house. But when Umeme officials and detectives arrived, Bibiana said, they were met by armed soldiers who not only blocked access but also tore up the court order. “We found the army deployed at the deceased’s home,” she stated. “They refused us access to the meter and destroyed the court order.”
A Scene Rewritten
According to Bibiana, the crime scene had been thoroughly tampered with by the time her team arrived. She said Patricia had moved the gun from the master bedroom to another room, and Amanyire had taken a live bullet and placed it on the bed.
She also observed that `Dr.` Charles Otai arrived at the house carrying a mysterious bag and had already met with Molly—well before police entered the scene. “This was not the original scene,” Bibiana emphasized. “The evidence had been moved, cleaned, and altered before we got there.”
A Crucial Detail: Right-Handed
In a potentially pivotal revelation, Bibiana said forensic analysis confirmed Henry Katanga legally owned his firearm, had it regularly renewed, and had no prior record of misuse. Crucially, police training records from Kibuli showed he was right-handed—a fact that may play a key role in determining whether the fatal gunshot was self-inflicted or not.
A Testimony That Stirs the Court
Bibiana’s detailed and methodical testimony—spread over two days—left defense attorneys visibly rattled. Document by document, she recounted arrests, exposed interference, and outlined glaring inconsistencies that now underpin the state’s case.
With cross-examination up next, the defense will attempt to punch holes in her narrative. But one thing is clear: the mystery surrounding what happened in the Katanga home on November 2, 2023, is only beginning to unravel.
