Police have Sunday morning arrested Sheikh Yahya Ramadhan Mwanje over the murder of another Sheikh, Mohammed Kiggundu which occurred on Saturday. Sheikh Kiggundu who is the 10th Muslim cleric to be assassinated in the space of 3 years was gunned down along with his body guard, Sgt. Mukasa by four masked men who were riding on boda boda.
The incident occurred at Masanafu, a Kampala suburb.
An audio that emerged just an hour after the killing, narrates the slain Sheikh’s story a week before the gruesome incident.
In the video, the deceased (Kiggundu) said that there was a plot being masterminded by Yahya Mwanje to convince Muslim clerics in Luzira including Kamoga to accept that they have been killing fellow colleagues.
According to Kiggundu, the plot was primarily targeting him and a week later he met his death. Sheikh Yahya is now the prime suspect being detained in an unknown location after being picked by the Counter Terrorism and Flying Squad officers on Sunday.
The Police Spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi confirmed to journalists at an impromptu press briefing on Sunday morning at the Force’s headquarters in Naguru that Yahaya is already in their custody.
“It is true that Sheikh Yahya Mwanje has been arrested and detained. He is with us though we can’t talk about his exact whereabouts,” Kaweesi said.
According to reports, Yahya who is a key figure in the Nakasero Mosque has previously made threatening utterances against several Muslim clerics including Kiggundu.
“He is going to be interrogated in line with his digital utterances which were very inciting and we want to know his motive,” added Kaweesi.
“Other suspects are yet to be picked as investigations continue. We ask for patience and calmness to allow the police to bring culprits to book.”
The syndicated assassination of Muslim clerics started in 2013.