Police in Ngora District have arrested Boniface Eyagu, the founder of the Teso Talents Foundation, over allegations that he fraudulently diverted funds donated by British sponsors to educate vulnerable children in the Teso Sub-region.
Eyagu was arrested following a complaint by UK-based donors who allege that money they had consistently sent to support disadvantaged learners was never used for its intended purpose. The donors reportedly became suspicious after noticing inconsistencies in the accountability documents Eyagu submitted whenever funds were disbursed.
They subsequently launched an investigation in collaboration with detectives from the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) at Ngora Central Police Station to verify whether the purported beneficiaries existed, identify the schools they attended, and establish whether the sponsorship funds had actually reached them.
Preliminary investigations allegedly revealed that Eyagu had been submitting forged or misleading accountability records, including school fees receipts, photographs and other documentation purportedly originating from Guerin Academy, a school investigators say does not exist.
Julius Ojula, the director of Vienna Nursery and Primary School in Kapelebyong District, said Eyagu first approached the school in 2025, presenting himself as the head of a donor-funded charity seeking to sponsor children from impoverished families.
“…He explained that his organisation supported vulnerable learners across Teso by paying their school fees. Although I accepted the proposal, I warned him that many people had previously made similar promises only to turn out to be fraudsters, ultimately damaging the reputation of schools,” Ojula said.
According to Ojula, Eyagu initially appeared genuine. Within a week, he paid 30,000 Shillings in school fees for one pupil before requesting the school to identify 10 more vulnerable learners.
“The school identified the pupils and informed their parents about the sponsorship programme. Eyagu then paid 70,000 Shillings for each of the 10 pupils to cover third-term school fees and took photographs of both the children and the school,” Ojula explained.
Ojula said Eyagu later expanded his activities by expressing interest in Vienna Vision School in Ngora District after learning that British volunteers were interested in teaching music. “He enrolled our pupils in online music lessons with the British donors, who conducted weekly training sessions. At that point, we trusted him completely because everything initially appeared legitimate,” he said.
However, the relationship took a different turn this year when Eyagu informed the school that donor funding had been discontinued and that the sponsors had declined to renew their support.
“He told us he could no longer pay school fees, support teachers or fund co-curricular activities because the donors had withdrawn. We accepted the explanation and informed parents accordingly,” Ojula said.
But the situation changed after the same British donors contacted the school directly, seeking updates on the sponsored pupils and asking whether their school fees had been fully paid for the year.
“I was shocked because Eyagu had told us the funding had stopped. When I contacted him about the donors’ email, he failed to give a satisfactory explanation,” Ojula added.
Ojula further alleged that Eyagu had continued receiving donor funds while falsely reporting that the beneficiaries were enrolled at Guerin Academy School. Instead, he allegedly used photographs of pupils from Vienna Vision School to convince donors that the non-existent institution was educating the sponsored children.
“It came as a shock to us that donor funds intended for our pupils continued to be sent, yet Eyagu never delivered them. He told us the funding had ended, but the donors later revealed they had continued sending money. The photographs he submitted to them were taken from our school, yet he claimed they depicted a different school that does not even exist,” Ojula alleged.
Ngora District Police Commander Denis Pahani confirmed that Eyagu is in police custody and is expected to be arraigned before the Ngora Chief Magistrate’s Court today.
Pahani said the suspect is being processed on charges related to the alleged theft of money intended for Vienna Nursery and Primary School, adding that investigations into the wider allegations concerning donor funds are ongoing to establish the full extent of the alleged fraud and whether additional victims or accomplices may be involved.
The allegations have raised fresh concerns about accountability and oversight within charitable organisations operating in Uganda, particularly those managing foreign donor funding intended to support vulnerable children-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
