An 11-year-old boy, Navas Mugisa, the son of Julius Tumusiime and Magret Adong tragically lost his life after being struck by a stray bullet during a police confrontation with residents in Kyakapere village, Kikuube district.
The incident occurred on Monday evening when tensions escalated between locals and police officers attempting to rescue a woman, Deborah Bero, from a mob accusing her of witchcraft.
The altercation began after residents detained Bero, blaming her for a recent unexplained death in the community. When the police arrived to defuse the situation and free Bero, the crowd responded aggressively, throwing stones at the officers and injuring the police driver. To disperse the crowd, police fired warning shots, during which Mugisa was inadvertently hit by a stray bullet.
The young boy was quickly taken to Hoima Regional Referral Hospital but was pronounced dead upon arrival. Julius Hakiza, the Albertine Region police spokesperson, confirmed the incident and condemned the mob’s actions, stating that police had fired in self-defense after being attacked.
Reginal Okumu, the LC II chairperson for Buhuka Parish, urged residents to avoid mob justice, noting that if the crowd had not attacked the police, this tragic incident could have been prevented.
