PHOTOS: Families flee as Kitagwenda students attack village over murdered colleague

Residents of Nyalugogo Cell in Kabujogera Town Council in Kitagwenda District have been plunged into fear after rowdy people believed to be students of Kitagwenda High School attacked the area following the alleged murder of their colleague.

It is believed that the attack was triggered by the reported murder of 18-year-old Senior Four student identified as Alinda Anesmus, whose body was on Sunday afternoon discovered in a coffee plantation.

The attackers reportedly attacked residents and destroyed property to families of a family believed to be associated with one of the suspects in the murder case.

Ms Scovia Owamaziima, a resident of the area, said the students who first gathered at the school gate pelted stones at the residents before storming the area later in the evening, slaughtering chickens and goats and burning houses.

"Students came pelting stones at us. Police intervened, and they returned to school. However, in the evening they came back, killed our chickens, goats and rabbits, and burned our houses. We spent the night at a nearby church because everything we owned had been destroyed," she said.

Ms Jolly Kebirungi, the owner of the coffee plantation where the body was discovered, said: "As soon as the police departed, students surrounded our home and started destroying property. They burned our house. I hid in a toilet before managing to escape to a church for safety."

She added that her family lost most of its belongings in the fire. "Our house was the first to be set ablaze. We tried to put out the fire, but there was no water or sand nearby. We had more than 50 chickens, but everything disappeared. Even our dog was beaten and can barely walk."

Ms Kebirungi further revealed that her husband was taken in for questioning because some residents believed he owned a nearby sugarcane plantation where the deceased had allegedly been seen before his death.

"My husband was arrested because people suspected he owned the sugarcane garden. However, we do not own any sugarcane plantations. The only connection we have to the case is that the body was found in our coffee garden," she said.

It is alleged that the deceased had left the school premises and gone to a nearby sugarcane plantation before he was killed, although police have not officially confirmed the circumstances leading to his death.

Mr Simon Ahimbisibwe, the head teacher of Kitagwenda High School, confirmed that the deceased was a Senior Four candidate at the school, but said calm had been restored by press time.

"We have lost one of our students. The situation at the school remains calm, although some students were seen loitering around the compound and others moved outside the school premises after learning of the incident," he said.

Rwenzori West Police Spokesperson, SP Vincent Twesige, said two suspects have been arrested over the murder incident, and are being held at Kabujogera Police Station.

"It is alleged that on June 21, 2026, at around 1:00 pm, the body of the deceased was found lying in a coffee plantation in Kicheche Cell, Kabujogera Town Council, with multiple cut wounds on the head, legs and arms. The incident was reported to Kabujogera Police Station," Rwenzori West Regional Police Spokesperson, SP Vincent Twesige said on Monday.

"The body was conveyed to Ntara Health Centre IV pending a postmortem examination. Statements from witnesses were recorded and two suspects, both residents of the area, were arrested to aid investigations," he added.

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