By Ben Musanje
Panic has gripped Kamwokya following the discovery of a fully developed fetus, believed to be about seven months old, in a latrine on church premises, prompting police to launch investigations to establish the circumstances surrounding its abandonment and identify the woman suspected of leaving it there.
Police said the fetus was discovered after an unidentified woman allegedly entered the latrine and left it behind. Investigators at Kira Road Police Station have since taken charge of the case, which authorities say is being treated seriously as they work to establish whether an offence amounting to murder was committed.
Luke Owoyesigyire, the Kampala Metropolitan Police Deputy Spokesperson, said the fetus was recovered and conveyed to Kira Road Police for further investigations.
“According to the size, this fetus was about seven months,” Owoyesigyire said during a security media briefing at Police headquarters in Naguru on Monday.
He said the fetus appeared to have been sufficiently developed, noting that its sex could be identified at the time it was recovered.
“It was fully built, you could really see even the sex, and we recovered this fetus. We have started investigating,” he said.
Owoyesigyire explained that while the remains may scientifically be described as a fetus because they were not fully developed, the circumstances surrounding the discovery have raised serious concerns for investigators.
He noted that babies born prematurely, including those at around seven months, can in many cases survive with appropriate medical care and go on to develop normally.
The fetus was found in a latrine located on church premises in Kamwokya. Police said the facility is also used by people from a nearby clinic as well as other members of the public, making it difficult at this stage to establish who may have left the fetus there.
“We cannot tell the source of this,” Owoyesigyire said, adding that investigations were still at an early stage.
Police are expected to examine the circumstances surrounding the discovery and establish who accessed the latrine around the time the fetus was abandoned. Investigators may also rely on information from people who use the facility, staff at the church and nearby clinic, as well as any other available evidence that could help identify the woman involved.
Owoyesigyire described the incident as “appalling” and assured the public that police would pursue the matter further.
He said more details would be released as investigations progress.
The discovery has raised concern in the densely populated Kamwokya area, where public facilities and shared spaces are frequently used by large numbers of residents and visitors. Police have not yet identified any suspect in connection with the incident.
Meanwhile, police have also renewed an appeal for information leading to the whereabouts of a 10-year-old pupil who has been missing for more than a month.
Kira Division Police and Kira Road Police are searching for Dan Nelson Munyaneza, a pupil of Cardinality Primary School in Kigowa-Ntinda, who reportedly went missing on July 26.
According to Owoyesigyire, Dan asked his mother for permission at about 8am on the day he disappeared to go to a friend’s home and collect a book.
He left his home in Kulambiro Zone, Nakawa Division, but did not return.
His family and neighbours subsequently searched for him without success before the matter was reported to police.
Owoyesigyire said police had recorded statements, followed up the route Dan was believed to have taken and reviewed available CCTV footage as part of efforts to establish his movements.
Despite those efforts, police have so far been unable to determine his whereabouts.
“We have done all it takes, recording statements, following up the route he could have taken, reviewing the CCTV footages, but we have not been successful,” Owoyesigyire said.
Police are now asking members of the public who may have seen Dan or have information about his whereabouts to come forward.
Anyone with information has been asked to report to DRS Police Station or contact police on 074-0441-520.
Owoyesigyire also urged members of the public to widely share the missing-child appeal on social media, saying similar public appeals had previously helped police trace missing persons and reunite them with their families.
“We have been appealing to members of the public in the past and we have been successful in tracing these missing persons, and we hope for the same,” he said.
The two cases were among matters addressed by the Kampala Metropolitan Police during Monday’s security media briefing at Police headquarters in Naguru.
For the Kamwokya case, police said investigations remain ongoing as they seek to establish the identity of the woman who allegedly abandoned the fetus and determine the exact circumstances that led to its discovery.
Police have urged anyone with information that could assist investigators to come forward as the hunt for the suspected woman continues. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
