Mike Mugarura who had duped several civil servants including police officers/ UPF picture
“Fear is the key that opens the wallets of the rich,” said a thriller writer. But the reality version is now unfolding in Uganda, as an arrested conman has started revealing identities of very important persons who have been giving him money they thought was being taken to the Director of Public Prosecutions Lady Justice Jane Frances Abodo to help get them off the hook of cases they are facing.
The suspected conman has been identified as Ivan Chubahiro and has been arrested for attempting to fleece some Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) officials while claiming to be raising money for “sorting out a financial challenge the DPP’s family is currently facing”.
The victims thought that by giving the DPP a hand in her hour of need, they would certainly be treated favorably when or before their cases come up before courts of law.
Chubahiro was tracked using police’s Cyber Crime Unit and Crime Intelligence as he was calling OWC officials claiming he had been assigned by Justice Abodo to collect money for her sister’s wedding, and providing contacts where to send money. The numbers which he has been giving, now in police hands, have received over 40 million shillings since he launched the fictitious fundraising for Justice Abodo.
Chubahiro, who has been using telephone lines 0703699339 and 075051446 would call people whom he knew were known to Justice Abodo and sometimes would call them by their rarely used names to convince them that he was executing a financial assignment of the country’s lead prosecutor.
“In OWC, I called the people who I knew are friends with the DPP and even when they made a promise, I kept calling them up until I eventually got the money,” Chubahiro reportedly said in a statement. “I called other VIPs who are very influential using the DPP and they also gave me some money. But I have never physically met the DPP.”
Chubahiro added that he would make a search of Very Important Persons (VIPs) who have cases being investigated by DPP or already in courts of law.
Also targeted were VIPs whose relatives are being prosecuted by the DPP.
”This man is not an ordinary masquerader,” a security source said. “He would invest time and effort to know which VIP has a case with DPP or which important person whose relative is being investigated. Whenever he got details, he would use that chance to make his financial extortion advances since many of the victims thought that would buy them a favour in their ongoing court cases or those of their relatives.”
Chubahiro has so far given names of eight VIPs he duped using DPP’s name and it is estimated that he has collected more than UGX40M using his tricks. Trouble came when some of the VIPs met the DPP officials and wanted to know which relative of Lady Justice Abodo was going to wed and it was later discovered it was a scam.
Fred Enanga, the police spokesperson, said they expect that a big number of people have fallen victim to Chubahiro’s tricks because all the three Sim Card lines he had been using had been receiving money as people thought they were contributing to the DPP’s cause.
“He rang VIPs and other stakeholders in the justice sector and solicited money from them, and we urge the public to come out and provide more information,” Enanga said.
Chubahiro did not spare even the clergy as Mufti Ramadhan Mubajje was also reportedly targeted for an unspecified amount of money. Many of the VIP victims have asked not to be mentioned but are providing details on how they were duped to investigators.
Other conmen duping civil servants, VIPs like ministers, business persons, police officers and legislators have in the past hit Kampala. Franklyn Babibasa conned MPs of money ranging from $290 -$1450 claiming he had been assigned by CMI to vet legislators fit to be ministers. Also, Mike Mugarura duped police officers millions of money in 2022 claiming he was assigned by state house to select those who were going to be sent abroad for further studies.
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