By Karim Were
Police in Mbarara District, together with other security agencies, have rescued a nurse and her teenage son who were allegedly kidnapped and held captive for four days by unknown assailants demanding a UGX 10 million ransom.
The victims, identified as Agiripina Atwiine, 50, a nurse attached to Kashongi Health Centre III in Kiruhura District, and her 14-year-old son, Ndowoza Ssekatawa, disappeared on May 11, 2026, while travelling from their home in Ihanika Cell, Nyanja Ward, Bukiiro Town Council to Kashongi Health Centre III.
According to investigators, the pair boarded an unidentified vehicle at Rutooma Trading Centre at around 7:30pm. Suspicion grew later that night after Atwiine’s husband, Gwoloba Ssekatawa, repeatedly tried to reach her by phone between 9pm and 10pm, only to find it switched off.
On the morning of May 12, Atwiine reportedly managed to contact her father, Aaron Byesigwoha, revealing that she and her son had been abducted and tied to a tree in an unknown bushy area. She told him the kidnappers were demanding UGX 10 million in exchange for their freedom.
Security agencies immediately launched a joint operation that culminated in the successful rescue of the mother and son. Authorities have not yet disclosed the exact circumstances of the rescue or whether any suspects have been arrested.
Police say investigations into the kidnapping are ongoing as efforts intensify to identify and apprehend those behind the crime.
