45-year-old Ntungamo father sentenced to 50 years in prison for defiling daughter, 7

The High Court in Ntungamo District, Western Uganda has sentenced a 45-year-old man to 50 years in prison after convicting him of aggravated defilement of his seven-year-old daughter.

Kasese District resident judge, Lawrence Tweyanze Karikwisya who presided over the trial, said the prosecution evidence, especially from the victim, was substantial enough to pin Wellen Kukundakwe.

“Prosecution has brought strong evidence in court and proved the gravity of the offense. The offense is a rather common one. The offender (Kukundakwe) breached trust as a father who should have protected the victim,” Justice Tweyanze said during the Monday court sitting.

Despite pleas by the defense lawyer, Mr Onesimus Matsiko to have the sentence reduced on the grounds that Kukundakwe was a father of four other children and had been rehabilitated during the three years he has been on remand, the judge noted that the offender deserved a deterrent sentence.

“Aggravating factors outweigh mitigating factors. This is a case of a violent father destroying a whole life of an innocent victim. What he did can only be done by an animal, not a human being. I applaud the child for taking courage to report her tormentor (father) and later turned up in court to testify. The convict deserves no mercy and needs to be put away from the public. If he could do this to his own daughter; not once but 10 times, what about others?” he said.

Kukundakwe will however, spend 46 years, three months and 20 days in jail after remission of the time he has spent on remand.

According to court, Kukundakwe, a metal fabricator at Rwamabondo trading centre committed the offences in November 2022 to the victim who had been left home by the mother who had escaped home following a domestic brawl.

The girl, now 10 years old, told court that her father, with whom she was staying alone, would invite her to his bed and defile her.

She was compelled to report to a neighbour, one Tumwesigye, after enduring a lot of pain.

Tumwesigye reportedly took the girl to police and later to hospital before the father was arrested and charged.

At the height of Covid-19, police in Ntungamo recorded 12 defilement offenses involving fathers and their daughters, with one parent found to have defiled three of his daughters and two of whom got pregnant.

In most of the cases, the mothers had fled the home, leaving their daughters in the hands of their fathers.

According to police, at least 300 cases of defilement are recorded from different police stations in the district, each year with at least 30 per cent involving relatives. However less than 75 per cent normally proceed to court as some are found wanting in evidence with cases put away at police level.

Same court dismissed 11 other cases of defilement following lack of prosecution.

Judge Tweyanze has been conducting the second criminal session of the high court at Ntungamo with at least 50 criminal cases tried during the session. At least 25 of the cases were murder, 19 were defilement while the rest were robbery, rape and kidnap.

Defilement growing concern

Defilement remains one of the most reported sexual offenses in Uganda.

According to the 2025 Annual Crime Report, police reported high, though slightly decreasing, rates of defilement, with 10,492 cases registered in 2025, which indicated a 14.8 percent decrease from 12,312 in 2024.

Police condemn the high prevalence of sexual violence against minors, often blaming it on poverty and cultural practices.

In 2025, 7,019 cases were "simple" (under 18) and 3,473 were "aggravated" (under 14, familial relationship, or perpetrator HIV+).

Many offenders are known to the victims, including teachers and parents.

Despite high reporting, 2024 data shows only about 11% of reported cases resulted in convictions, with 81% pending in court.

Key challenges include corruption (families settling for bribes) and lack of evidence, with victims sometimes coached to protect the perpetrator.