Search for headteacher's killers moves to Uganda on fresh leads

Charles Emoto. He was fatally shot in the stomach. [Courtesy]

Police in Busia have launched investigations into the murder of a primary school head teacher in Teso South.

The officers indicated that they were narrowing down to close friends of the deceased, identified as Charles Emoto from Ong’ariama Primary School.

Emoto was fatally shot in the stomach at around 12:40am on Thursday, with the bullet exiting from the back of his waist.

According to police, the assailants robbed their victim of an unspecified amount of money in two safe boxes and escaped on a waiting motorbike into neighbouring Uganda where the safe boxes were found without money.

One of the officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) unit in Busia disclosed that they intended to question members of a table banking group where the teacher was a treasurer, together with the deceased’s wife.

The officer linked the murder to an inside job, stating that they have widened their investigation to Uganda.

“The amount in question is Sh60,000. However, based on our preliminary investigation, this is an inside job and that is why we are narrowing it down to the members of the table banking group and close family members and friends,” said the officer.

“The issue of safe boxes that store money being recovered in Uganda is just a diversionary tactic by robbers because no one can travel from Uganda and come to steal money from a local, the suspects are from within Busia and we have already established a lead and we hope to arrest the suspects soon,” he added.

Teso South Sub-county Director of Criminal Investigations Said Juma said they have established a lead in the investigation, stating that the safe boxes and the record book of the members found in Uganda have been taken for forensic analysis and the bullet recovered at the scene of the crime has been taken for ballistic analysis.

“There are some of the key areas and aspects in this investigation that we have already established as we continue with our investigation but we are calling upon members of the community to volunteer information that would be useful in unravelling the truth,” said Juma.

Teso South Sub-county Police Commander Amos Ambasa said they have travelled to Uganda and managed to collect some of the pieces belonging to the safe boxes.

“I am urging the locals and family members to be calm because we are in the middle of the investigation, however, members of groups must save their money and savings in the bank,” said Ambasa.

“No one among us police officers or locals knew the money was in the safe box apart from the members of the table banking group and family members, but I am assuring locals and family members that the suspect will be arrested,” said Ambasa.

Prsica Amoit, the teacher’s widow said thugs in a group of three raided their home at midnight armed with a firearm and an axe and demanded that she show them where the money was kept.

“I heard noise emanating from outside our house and decided to find out what was happening. To my shock I heard people asking my children in their bedroom where their parents have kept the safe box that has money,” said Amoit.

She added: “When I was going to alert my husband I heard the sound of the bullet, I saw the three men with a gun and axe in our bedroom and they placed the gun on my forehead threatening to kill me if I was not going to reveal where the safe is. I showed them the safe that was in our bedroom and they took it.”

Amoit said as soon as the thugs took the two safe boxes, before they could get out of the house she heard another gunshot.

“When I saw them board a motorbike, I got out of our bedroom and I was shocked to find the body of my husband lying on the floor just outside the door of our bedroom,” she said.

Kenya Nation Union of Teachers (Knut) Teso Branch Executive Secretary Geoffrey Ekasiba said the stolen money was teachers’ savings.

Teso North Sub-county Police Commander Joseph Matiku said investigations are ongoing and urged teachers to be calm.