By Kabuye Ronald
Nearly a decade after the assassination of state prosecutor Joan Kagezi, former commander of the Police Special Operations Unit, Nixon Agasiirwe, has been formally charged with her murder.
Agasiirwe appeared before the Nakawa Chief Magistrates Court on Monday and was charged under sections 183 and 184 of Uganda’s Penal Code for the fatal shooting of Kagezi in 2015. As the charge is a capital offense, triable only by the High Court, Agasiirwe was not allowed to enter a plea.
Chief Magistrate Esther Nyadoi remanded him to Luzira Prison until July 8, as the prosecution, led by Joseph Kyomuhendo, stated that investigations into the case are still ongoing.
Joan Kagezi, then a senior principal state attorney, was gunned down in Kiwatule, a suburb of Kampala, as she returned home with her children. At the time of her murder, she was prosecuting a high-profile terrorism case involving suspects in the 2010 Kampala twin bombings that killed over 70 people.
Her killing shocked the nation and sent ripples through Uganda’s justice system, raising questions about the safety of judicial officers handling sensitive cases.
Agasiirwe, once regarded as one of the most powerful figures in Uganda’s security apparatus, had already faced prior allegations involving human rights abuses and illegal detention. His arrest and subsequent arraignment in connection to Kagezi’s murder mark one of the most significant developments in the long-stalled case.
