By KT Reporter
The Professional Standards Unit -PSU is yet to decide the fate of police officers arrested over the Kasokoso incident where a man was murdered in suspected crime of passion. Police Constables Michael Okwalinga and Jackson Okello were arrested at the weekend after a man they had allegedly gone to arrest for attempting to strangle his wife was fatally shot 21 times.
Okwalinga is the policeman accused of fatally shooting Simon Waibu who was allegedly rekindling his love with Zaina Nakazibwe with who he had separated months back. However, Okwalinga had allegedly already fallen in love with Nakazibwe.
The policeman allegedly got angry when he found Waibu in an intimate situation with Nakazibwe, the reason he allegedly fatally shot him 21 times and only left nine bullet out of the 30 that were in the magazine.
A crime of passion is a violent offence committed in a state of intense emotion such as rage, anger, or jealousy. In the legal context, the culprit is described as having acted without rational thought when faced with an emotional situation.
Patrick Onyango, the Kampala metropolitan police spokesperson, said there were different clues being followed and thus a quick decision couldn’t be taken. He said it is a scenario that involves murder and it needs time to ensure that all the possible evidence is collected.
PSU are also trying to verify the suspicion that Okello attempted to protect Okwalinga by agreeing with the latter to frame the deceased as having tried to escape from lawful arrest yet it was a clear murder motivated by love rage.
“These police officers created a story that Okwalinga was running away and he was shot in attempt to stop him. However, the SOCOs report indicates that he was shot while in one position on the ground,” a policeman said.
PSU was mandated by former Inspector General of Police, Martin Ochola, to investigate and determine the befitting punishment for any police officer in contradiction of the police operating procedures.
An officer who is not satisfied with PSU judgment appeals to the police appellate tribunal currently chaired by the director of welfare and production, Assistant Inspector General of Police –AIGP Hadijah Namutebi.
URN was informed that Okwalinga is likely to face dismissal from the force before he is handed over for criminal prosecution. Okello might face severe reprimand for attempting to conceal the actual reason why Okwalinga killed Waibu and that means that if he commits any further offence he automatically gets dismissed from the force.
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