By Aggrey Baba
A wave of fear and shock descended upon the trading community of Bulaga after a man brutally murdered his girlfriend and later took his own life in what police are calling one of the most disturbing domestic incidents in recent memory.
The double tragedy occurred on the night of April 11, 2025, shaking the densely populated suburb along the Kampala–Mityana Road.
Police were first alerted at around 8:30 PM that a man had been found hanging in an unfinished building near Bulaga Daily Market. The deceased, later identified as Mayanja Umar, 33, a casual worker at the market, was initially thought to have committed suicide.
However, when residents and authorities broke into his nearby rented room, they were met with a horrifying discovery, of the lifeless body of his girlfriend, Namakula Sumaya, 26, lying in a pool of blood, her body partially hidden under a bedsheet.
Police investigations revealed that Mayanja had hit and stabbed Namakula to death using a hammer and knives, before purchasing ropes from a nearby shop and hanging himself a few meters away in an unoccupied structure.
The gruesome nature of the murder-suicide has left the Bulaga community traumatized and shaken. Market vendors, neighbors, and friends have expressed fear and confusion over how a man so familiar to them could carry out such a savage act. “This is beyond comprehension,” said Mr Kosima Wakiku, commonly known as ‘Rasta’, a barbr and electronics shop owner. “We now sleep with fear. If someone can murder and hang himself in the same compound where we all live and work, then who is safe anymore?”
According to Aunt Daisy, the owner of the salon where Namakula worked, the victim left her workplace at 4:30 PM after Mayanja told her to go home and pick money for supper.
She left her phone behind, intending to return shortly. When she delayed, Daisy became uneasy and went to check on her. When she called and asked if the couple was fine, Mayanja responded from behind a locked door, insisting everything was fine.
Hours later, he called Daisy again, claiming he had taken Namakula out for dinner at KFC in Bulenga, and they would return late. In reality, Namakula was already dead by then.
Police recovered HIV test result slips from the couple’s room, dated just a day before the incident. The documents revealed that Namakula had tested HIV positive, while Mayanja’s result was negative.
One of Mayanja’s colleagues told our reporter that Mayanja had, in the past, spoken openly about killing any woman who infected him with HIV and then committing suicide, chilling words that would later echo in the actions he took.
Neighbors confirmed that the couple had been living together but had recently separated due to some misunderstandings. However, the two had reunited the night before the murder, following a mediation by their landlady. That night, they slept together after what seemed like a reconciliation.
Namakula had reportedly promised to move back in permanently on Easter. Instead, she never made it to the next day.
The tragic climax came when Jona, a close friend and neighbor, found Mayanja’s body hanging inside an unfinished house next to his room. He notified local authorities, and crowds gathered in horror. When police entered the couple’s room, they uncovered the shocking murder scene.
Both bodies were taken to the city mortuary for postmortem examinations and later returned to the community for a final viewing. Mayanja was buried in Katosi, Mukono District on April 12, and Namakula in Luweero District on April 13.
The Wakiso District Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths, but residents remain shaken by the brutality of the crime. What was once a typical evening in a lively market town turned into a night of terror, leaving a scar that may take years to fade.
“This wasn’t just a domestic dispute, but a massacre behind closed doors,” one resident, Masembe Qudra, who was a neighbor to the couple, remarked. “Now everyone is afraid, not just of strangers, but of the people they think they know.” (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
