UGANDA: Man gets six years in jail for assaulting magistrate, policeman

By David shapil


Tororo

A magistrate’s court in Tororo has sentenced a 46-year-old man to six years in jail for assaulting a judicial official and a policeman.

The Grade One Magistrate’s court found Joseph Oburu, the defence secretary of Kadanya Village in Mella Sub-county, Tororo District, guilty of assaulting Mr Simon Ocen, a magistrate, and Sergeant Hanington Obbo.

According to the prosecution, Oburu assaulted Mr Ocen on December 5 after he acquitted four people he was jointly charged with for allegedly threatening violence. Mr Oburu also assaulted Sergeant Obbo, when he tried to rescue Magistrate Ocen.

Grade One Magistrate Joan Acaa convicted Oburu on two accounts of threatening violence and assault. Mr Oburu was sentenced to serve each of the accounts for 36 months consecutively at Logore Prison in Gulu District. Mr Oburu pleaded for lenience, saying he was the bread winner of his family. He said students who he pays fees for would drop out of school if he was given a lengthy jail term.

Judgement

Ms Acaa said although the convict was a first-time offender, and has no known criminal records, he over reacted instead of appealling against the judgement. ‘’By attacking a judicial officer and a police officer who was executing lawful arrest, with such acts, the lives of most of judicial officers are in danger and this will automatically create fear to any would-be judicial officers transferred to Tororo,” Ms Acaa said.

She added: “I hear by sentence to 36 months for threatening violence and another 36 months on the other account of assault consecutively, which is equivalent to six years imprisonment to Logore Prison in Gulu away from Tororo.’’

Source: Daily Monitor 927/12/2012): http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Man-gets-six-years-in-jail--for-assaulting-magistrate--policeman/-/688334/1651940/-/evb10ez/-/index.html