The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
SPECIAL REPORT | ANTHONY NATIF | As recorded in court, in the case Uganda Vs Molly Katanga and  via @TonyNatif
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On Tuesday 20th May 2025, this matter got another adjournment to June 10th 2025. Reason: a combination of the unavailability of the judge, Rosette Comfort Kania who has other pending cases to attend to away from Kampala, and engagements by the prosecution.
Mrs. Katanga’s defense, led by former Solicitor General and former DPP SC Peter Kabatsi, expressed displeasure at yet another delay, but on hearing about the unavailability of the judge, SC Kabatsi said, “Well, our hands are tied.”
But before that, the actual business. Court concluded hearing the evidence in chief, cross-examination, and re-examination of the 16th prosecution witness, Ann (not real name), a station manager at UBC Radio, a role she has filled for 15 years. She has 20 years transcription experience at that workplace.
She translated and transcribed Mr George Amanyire’s scene reconstruction interview conducted with @PoliceUg Officer Bibiana Akong who was an investigating officer in this case. George Amanyire has been a shamba boy for the Katangas for over 6 years and was at the residence when the incident that led to the death of Mr Henry Katanga occurred. He’s also charged.
This evidence was the third scene reconstruction evidence presented by the prosecution, following that of Charles Otai who rushed to the scene when called to help attend to a bleeding, deeply wounded Molly Katanga and Patricia Kakwanzi a daughter of the Katangas who was also just called to the scene.
It’s at this point that I, perhaps, need to warn the faint-hearted to stop reading because what’s to come next is a tale of a beating so gruesome that it might put some of your most violent nightmares to shame.
On Tuesday 20th May 2025, this matter got another adjournment to June 10th 2025. Reason: a combination of unavailability of the Judge, Rosette Comfort Kania who has other pending cases to attend to away from Kampala and engagements by the prosecution.
Mrs… https://t.co/tv2dHaWPTR pic.twitter.com/ueHZqpoOw3
— Anthony Natif (@TonyNatif) May 23, 2025
On the morning of November 2 2023, George was going about his normal duties. He woke up, headed to the yard and started washing his boss Henry Katanga’s car in preparation for him going to work.
Around 7am as he was washing the car, he heard loud noises coming from the couple’s bedroom. He says in Rutoro that it sounded like Henry was beating his wife, who was loudly crying. He rushed up and knocked on the bedroom door. The beating temporarily stopped, Henry asked who was at the door. George identified himself, and Henry told him to go away. George went back to his car washing duties. CCTV footage presented weeks earlier showed this part.
Henry resumed beating his wife, and she started crying out loudly again. George called the couple’s two daughters to come to the residence. They don’t stay far from their parents’ home at Chwa 2 Road in Mbuya.
George then went back up to knock and stop the fighting. Again he was sent back, and the beating continued.
He tried again the third time, but only this time, he went with a lady who lived in the house; her name is Kayenje. They knocked on the door, the beating paused, and Henry asked: who are you and what do you want?
Kayenje answered, “Martha,” the couple’s daughter, who is also charged. Kayenje was lying, perhaps in the hope that her invoking of the name of their daughter would get Henry to stop the beating and open the door.
He ignored them and continued beating his wife, who continued crying loudly.
George heard what he thought was the sound of a breaking glass and a voice calling him.
He rushed upstairs and found a trail of blood from the master bedroom to the adjoining one. He heard a faint voice call him, saying: “help me, I’m out of blood, I’m going to die”.
He entered the room, into the bathroom, where he found Molly naked, in a pool of blood, arms broken, hands held to the rest of the arms only by skin, skull cracked, and blood gushing out of it.
He walked back “out of respect for his boss coz she was naked”. She called him back and asked that he calls her daughters to take her to hospital. He said he already had but called again anyway.
He said from the blood pattern, she probably leaned against the wall, crawled on the floor to “safety” (forensics confirmed it was her blood)
The daughters arrived soon after.
