Police in Busoga East are hunting for a 50-year-old man accused of beating his wife to death following a domestic dispute in Mayuge District. Peter Ofwono is accused of killing his 40-year-old wife, Rebecca Nabirye, at their matrimonial home in Mashaga B Village, Kityerera Sub-county, before fleeing.
According to preliminary accounts, Ofwono allegedly assaulted Nabirye severely and, upon realising that she had succumbed to her injuries, covered her body with bedsheets before disappearing. Nabirye’s body was later discovered lying in a pool of blood and taken to Mayuge Health Centre IV mortuary for a postmortem examination before being handed over to her relatives for burial.
The couple’s five children reportedly witnessed the assault. Their eldest daughter, Matilda Nyapendi, says their father threatened to hack anyone who attempted to raise an alarm with a machete before locking them inside a store. Nyapendi says the children spent much of the morning crying and pleading with their mother to open the door, unaware that she might already have been killed.
It was only after a well-wisher opened the store for them that they discovered their mother’s body inside the main house, prompting them to alert neighbours for help. The area LC1 Chairperson, Samwiri Mususwa, says he had known the couple for about 18 years and had previously considered their relationship stable.
However, Mususwa says tensions emerged in mid-October when Ofwono began accusing his wife of infidelity and subsequently lodged a complaint before the local council court.
According to Mususwa, a meeting was convened to address the allegations, but Ofwono failed to present evidence to support his claims.“I remember Ofwono citing that his inner instincts were compelling him to suspect his wife of infidelity, but he lacked both witnesses and any other form of implicating evidence to pin her down,” Mususwa said. He adds that Ofwono publicly apologised to Nabirye during the meeting and promised to stop harbouring suspicions about her loyalty.
Mususwa says he is shocked that the disagreement escalated into a fatal incident barely two weeks after the couple had publicly pledged to resolve their differences. Busoga East Police Spokesperson Michael Kasadha has confirmed the incident, saying the search for Ofwono is ongoing and that police are pursuing him for arrest. Kasadha urged couples experiencing marital disagreements to seek peaceful solutions, including amicable separation where differences cannot be resolved, rather than resorting to violence.
He warned that domestic violence often ends in tragedy, with victims suffering permanent injuries or losing their lives, while perpetrators risk suicide or lengthy prison sentences. Suggested alternative headline: Mayuge Man Flees After Allegedly Beating Wife to Death-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
