The wife of a Ugandan lawmaker is on the spot over allegations that she is involved in a child trafficking ring.
Betty Lokol Achia, the wife to Bokoro County MP is on the spot for alleged child trafficking. She was intercepted on Wednesday this week while ferrying five children from Logolei village in Matany Sub County in Napak district to Masindi for domestic and garden work.
Molly Nangiro, the Napak Senior Probation and Child Welfare Officer, says Achia’s wife was intercepted at Lorengechora town council in Napak with the children. According to Nangiro, they acted on a tip off by some residents. She however, says the suspect managed to convince the officers not to arrest her after producing a letter from the LC I chairperson.
In his July 14, 2017 letter, Lucus Lomilo, the LC I Chairman, Logolei village indicates that the children were to travel via Lira to Masindi. However, it didn’t specify how long the children will spend in Masindi district. Nangiro says they asked police to follow up the matter given the increasing number of child trafficking cases in the district.
Richard Aruk Maruk, the Mt. Moroto Regional Police Commander, says the MP’s wife only transported some desperate girls from the village to help with some domestic chores. “We have established that some of the girls were even married but there are some people with malicious minds spreading rumors that it’s child trafficking,” Maruk told URN on phone.
But David Agaba, the Napak District Police Commander contradicted his boss, saying the girls are minors. “You go to the region in Moroto but what I know is all the girls are below 18 years,” said Agaba on phone before hanging up. Information obtained by URN show that the LC I one who wrote the letter is custody to help police investigations.
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