Ibanda police retrieve body of minor dumped in river

Police in Ibanda District have recovered the body of a young girl believed to have been murdered and dumped near a riverbank in a case that has shocked residents of Ibanda Municipality.

The decomposing body of the unidentified minor, estimated to be between eight and nine years old, was discovered on Friday evening near River Ekyambu in Ruyonza Cell, Bufunda Ward, after a teenager collecting firewood noticed a swarm of flies around a suspicious object near the water.

According to preliminary information from the Ibanda Resident District Commissioner, Mr Godfrey Mbetegyereize, the teenager became alarmed after spotting what appeared to be a human hand protruding from the body and immediately alerted nearby residents.

“We got information from the residents informing us about the incident involving an unknown body that was found dumped in a river, and the security team managed to reach the scene,” Mr Mbetegyereize said.

He said the body had already started decomposing by the time police arrived and that residents in the area failed to identify the deceased child.

“The deceased is about eight to nine years old and the body had started decomposing. Locals have not been able to identify her and no one has come to claim or report a missing child in the area,” he said.

Authorities suspect the body may have been dumped upstream from neighbouring districts because River Ekyambu flows from Kazo District through Ibanda before joining River Mpanga in Kamwenge District.

“We suspect the body might have been dumped from either Kazo since the river flows from there to Ibanda, but we are still investigating,” Mr Mbetegyereize added.

The body was transferred to Ruhoko Health Centre IV for postmortem examinations as investigations continue into the circumstances surrounding the minor’s death.

Police and local authorities have appealed to the public for help in identifying the child.

“We are informing the general public that whoever could be knowing or having a relationship to the deceased should come and claim the body for burial as we wait for postmortem results,” Mr Mbetegyereize said.

Mr Lawrence Twebaze, a resident of Ruyonza Cell, said the incident had left the community disturbed because no missing child had been reported in the area.

“We do not know the child and no one has been able to identify the body so that they can claim it. We are also wondering whose child could have been murdered and dumped in the river,” he said.