Police in Luwero district are investigating a case of possible ritual sacrifice after an 8-year-old boy was beheaded and his body dumped in a garden near his home.
The incident occurred in Butanza-Kisule village, Katikamu Sub-County.
The victim has been identified as Yasin Sseruga. The deceased’s parents one Yasin, the father and Florence Nabatanzi, the mother reported a case of their missing child on Friday to the Butanza-Kisule Local Council 1 chairman Godfrey Kafeero.
This was after he failed to return home. According to chairman Kafeero, after registering this report, he also took it to Wobulenzi Police Station. Amidst all this, he says that they also put announcements on Megaphones.
Chairman Kafeero said on Sunday morning, a resident who was heading to the garden landed on the headless body lying near a tree. The killer apparently took off with the head, leaving left the torso behind.
Police have taken the torso for postmortem. The force has also deployed sniffer dogs to the scene of crime. Patrick Lule, the Acting Savannah Regional police publicist, says that the force has deployed officers to collect information.
Lule says he will give a detailed account into the investigations later. Although residents have put the murder to suspected ritual sacrifice, police is yet to establish the truth.
“We have taken the body for postmortem but we call upon anybody with information that can guide the investigation to pass it to the police. Avoid rumors and unfounded talks but cooperate with the police,” he said.
Ms Regina Nabachwa, a resident of Butanza- Kisule village, said that the incident had re-awakened the fear of suspected child kidnappers targeting child sacrifice.
“We are surprised that the assailants took away the head, some fingers and toes. This is a painful experience as a parent. They did not bother to call the parents for possible ransom. The suspects must have targeted the human body parts,” Nabachwa claimed in an interview.