By Aggrey Baba
Fresh details are now emerging about the controversial rise of Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Nixon Agasirwe, who was this week remanded to Luzira Prison over his alleged role in the assassination of former prosecutor Joan Kagezi.
While his appearance in the Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court on June 16 has reopened public interest in the stalled Kagezi murder investigation, investigators and security sources are now tracing back the unusual journey that took Agasirwe from a backstreet life in Mbarara to the nerve centre of police intelligence operations under the leadership of former Inspector General of Police (IGP), Gen. Kale Kayihura.
As reported yesterday, Agasirwe, alongside others are facing crimes of allegedly coordinating and financing the shooting of Kagezi in March 2015. But beyond the murder accusation lies a longer and deeper story of a man who quietly climbed the ranks in the police force despite serious red flags about his past.
Born Nickson Agasirwe, the officer’s early life was unremarkable. He was a cobbler in Mbarara town, fixing shoes in busy trading centres around Katete and Kakoba. However, local accounts from that time also point to his involvement with criminal gangs that terrorized communities in different areas of Mbarara.
According to multiple sources familiar with his background, Agasirwe reportedly led a network of petty criminals before catching the attention of police intelligence operatives, who, rather than arrest him, they allegedly approached him with an offer to become an informant and provide leads on other criminals in exchange for money and protection.
That marked the beginning of his association with Uganda Police Force, after which, he was inducted as a Special Police Constable around 2002, during the early years of Kayihura’s time as IGP.
Once inside the Force, Agasirwe rose rapidly, mostly due to the protection and trust he enjoyed from Gen Kayihura. He was posted to various intelligence operations and eventually appointed head of the now-defunct Rapid Response Unit (RRU), a secretive outfit that was widely accused of carrying out illegal arrests, torture and extra-judicial detentions.
RRU operated with minimal oversight, and Agasirwe’s name soon became synonymous with brutality, especially among suspects arrested during political protests or in cases involving terrorism.
Despite not having formal academic credentials at the time, Agasirwe wielded more power than most of his senior colleagues. It wasn’t until 2009 that he obtained his A-level certificate, and in 2016 he reportedly enrolled at Islamic University in Uganda for further studies, earning a bachelor of Laws Degree.
Although Agasirwe’s influence appeared to dwindle after Kayihura was sacked in 2018, he remained under scrutiny. His arrest in 2017 by the army (together with other senior officers) over the abduction of Lt. Joel Mutabazi, a former Rwandan presidential bodyguard, marked the beginning of his downfall.
He spent five years in detention before being released on bail in 2022. Now, barely three years later, he finds himself back behind bars (this time facing one of the most sensitive murder trials in the country’s recent history).
The latest charges against Agasirwe stem from new testimony by Daniel Kisekka, a convict currently serving 35 years for his role in the assassination of Joan Kagezi. In court, Kisekka named Agasirwe as the mastermind of the hit, claiming he saw him meet with co-accused John Kibuuka two days before the murder in Kalerwe.
Prosecution alleges that Agasirwe paid UGX 500,000 to Kibuuka to execute the killing. Kagezi, then serving as head of the International Crimes Division at the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, was investigating sensitive terrorism cases, including the July 2010 Kampala bombings.
She was shot dead on March 30, 2015, as she drove home with her children, a murder shocked the nation and left a chilling message to judicial officers working on high-profile cases.
Forensic investigators have now revealed that the firearm used in Kagezi’s murder is the same one that was used in the killings of Muslim clerics around Kampala in 2015. This revelation has fueled suspicions of a wider criminal network possibly operating within or in parallel to state security agencies.
Three other suspects, Kibuuka, John Masajjagge and Nasur Abudallah Mugonole, are already facing trial for their alleged roles in the same case. The addition of Agasirwe, however, has raised the stakes.
It’s no longer just about a single murder. It could be part of a coordinated scheme that was allowed to thrive under the cover of official operations.
Agasirwe’s indictment now offers a measure of hope that justice (though delayed) may still be possible. However, the legal process ahead will be long and difficult. Witness testimonies, like that of Kisekka, will be contested. Questions will be raised about why it took nearly ten years for such a key suspect to be arrested.
