People who are yet to be identified have kidnapped the son of Lt Col Francis Ongia who coordinates Operation Wealth Creation in Amolatar district, demanding a ransom of Shs 15 million.
This website has learnt that Lt Col Ongia’s 33-year-old son, Dennis Alyenyo was mysteriously abducted last week on Thursday night at around 11pm from his house in Magamaga military barracks in Jinja district.
According to his father who spoke exclusively to SoftPower News, Dennis was in his house sleeping when the unknown people vanished with him.
Dennis is a civilian who works with the Ministry of Defence at Magamaga barracks and also runs a small business with colleagues in the canteens in the unit.
“We suspect that he was sleeping in his house where he stays outside the barracks. Some people came, knocked he opened and they took him as he was,” Lt Col Ongia said.
Neighbors claim they did not see anybody or hear anything suspicious during the fateful night.
The father is certain that his son was in his room, since his spectacles were found inside the house. He says that Dennis wears spectacles all the time and he can never do without them.
“We found his spects on the Bible near his bed and the door was half opened. This implies that the movement began from inside the house”.
The family came to learn about Dennis’ disappearance the following day on Friday after his captors contacted them demanding for a ransom of Shs 15 million.
“People called Friday and demanded for the money, 15m. So that’s when we involed security and went to Jinja to comb around the place, but found nothing,” he said.
He says the kidnappers have only used Dennis’ telephone number to contact the family. On Friday, they called his wife and insisted they wanted to deal with her and not any other person.
“When my wife spoke to him [son] on Friday, he was crying and she said it sounded like they were torturing him”.
Yesterday, one of Dennis’ aunties after several attempts to talk to the kidnapped nephew with no success, was also allowed to speak to him on phone. According to the auntie, Dennis says they are trying to kill him for no reason and that he has not done anything.
Suspects
According to Lt Col Ongia, it is suspected that Dennis was kidnapped by people that he either knew or worked with especially given that all signs pointed to the fact that the neighbors heard no commotion or signs of struggle.
“We think the people who called him out could have been people he knew or he works with,” Ongia said.
Asked whether there could be any disputes or misunderstandings that could have resulted into intentions of harming his son, the army officer could not point to any. He describes Dennis as a very free and friendly person to everybody around his workplace and community who does not discriminate against anybody.
He adds that the son neither drinks nor engages in promiscuous tendencies.
However, there were some few misunderstandings between him and one or two workmates and the father says these individuals have since written statements.
‘”Until the security comes out clearly on the people they are suspecting, only then can we start pointing to any possible leads,” he responded when asked if there is any prime suspect.
Lt Col Ongia says that although the abductors have persistently avoided talking to him, he is willing to cooperate and give in to their demands (Shs 15 million) only if he has proof of life.
“If money can bring my son back, definitely i have to give them. But I need guidance. We have systems that have known how these people behave and what tantamounts to what,” he told this website.
In recent months, the rising cases of kidnaps have gripped the country in fear following mysterious abductions that have ended up in gruesome murders. In February, Susan Magara, a young accountant was kidnapped from Rubaga in Kampala only for her dead body to be found dumped in Kigo, Wakiso district two weeks later.