The High Court in Kampala has ordered that each of the 23 suspects in the murder of former police spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi be compensated with Shs 80 million for violation of their rights.
Justice Margret Oguli on Thursday ordered government to pay Shs 80 million to each of the suspects at 20 percent interest on grounds that prison authorities violated their rights by torturing them while in custody.
“The applicants are still suspects until proven guilty. And therefore should be treated well without torturing them,” ruled Justice Ouguli.
According to the judge, there was enough evidence to convince court that prison authorities had hideous motives when they refused to subject the suspects to medication.
The ruling follows an application by the suspects’ lawyer Ladislaus Rwakafuzi seeking court orders compelling government to take them for medical examination to verify the cause of injuries they had.
The suspects told court that they were arrested from their homes and unlawfully detained in military custody before being transferred to the dreaded Nalufenya Police Station in Jinja District which is infamous for torture.
They further told court that they had not received sufficient treatment for the wounds.
Kaweesi was gunned down with his bodyguard and driver on March 17 this year as he left his home in Kulambiro, a Kampala suburb. The gunmen made off with his pistol and the escort’s gun.
Many suspects were arrested and remanded but while they appeared in court, most of them had wounds they claimed were inflicted on them by security officers while in custody.