New Twist in Arua Ambulance Theft Case as Police Punches Holes in Suspects’ Confessions

Uganda Police Force (UPF) has refuted claims that a medical doctor has confessed to the crime of stealing an ambulance at the Arua Regional Referral Hospital ambulance.

According to SP Josephine Angucia, the West Nile regional police spokesperson, “no doctor was arrested among the five suspects” and “none of the suspects told police that they stole and sold the ambulance at three hundred million shillings because they thought the ‘government was changing in May and so needed exile money.”

Responding to claims published by The Observer that the suspects had said they needed money to flee Uganda after suspecting that Museveni’s government could fall in May 2021, SP Angucia clarified on the suspects they had in custody.

She added that the confession reported online was different from what is on record.

“The truth is that the five people arrested between 2nd and 5th December 2021 in relation to theft of Arua Regional Referral Hospital ambulance included a Dental Assistant, a security guard at the hospital, a driver of the Hospital, a driver attached to OPM, and one other ally of the four,” said Angucia.

“In an interrogation conducted by the joint forces of Police, ISO and CMI they truly confessed to have stolen the ambulance and taken it to DRC Congo. However, they claim that they have not yet received money for the sale of the ambulance.”

Angucia further noted that the case of the theft of the ambulance can be traced back to Saturday March 27, 2021 when the ambulance, Toyota Land Cruiser number UG 6812M went missing from the hospital parking yard.

Consequently, a case of theft of the ambulance was reported at Arua CPS under Arua CRB 305/2021.

She went on to say that investigations commenced and led to the immediate arrest of the night guards on duty at the hospital on the fateful day.

“Four guards were accordingly arrested and prosecuted to courts of law from where they pleaded not guilty and the case is still going on up to date,” added Angucia.

“Since then, intelligence-led investigations have been going on with a view to recovering the ambulance and to arrest the perpetrators.”

She confirmed that the five suspects remain admitted at the Arua CPS but “the ambulance is yet to be recovered.”