Former Police Special Operations Commander Nixon Agasirwe and his co-accused, Abdul Noor Ssemujju, have been further remanded to Luzira Prison as investigations intensify.
Appearing before Nakawa Grade One Magistrate Andrew Katurubuki, the accused—through their lawyer, Michael Akampulira—asked court to commit them to the High Court for trial, noting that they have already spent 150 days on remand.
Prosecution, led by Eunice Baine, informed court that the state is working tirelessly to ensure the accused are committed to the High Court.
During the court session, Ssemujju broke down emotionally as he asked Baine to tell State Prosecutor Richard Birivumbuka to present a recording he claimed to have, allegedly capturing a conversation between them and a man identified as Kagame, in which they were purportedly plotting to kill Kagezi.
“Let him bring the evidence in the High Court because he told us that he has it,” Ssemujju said.
Agasirwe was arrested in May in connection with the 2015 assassination of Senior Principal State Attorney Joan Kagezi a case that had long stalled but is now regaining momentum. Prosecutors pledged to provide the committal documents at the next court session scheduled for November 19, 2025.
In June, Agasirwe appeared before Nakawa Chief Magistrate Esther Nyadoi, where he was formally charged with murder and remanded. His appearance followed his May arrest, reportedly triggered by new and damning testimony from a key state witness.
That witness, Daniel Kiwanuka Kisekka, a former Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) deserter, told the International Crimes Division of the High Court that a man he identified only as “Nick”—believed to be Agasirwe ordered Kagezi’s killing.
At the time of the assassination, Agasirwe served as Head of Special Police Operations under then–Inspector General of Police Gen. Kale Kayihura. Following his recent arrest, he was initially detained at the Flying Squad Headquarters in Kireka, where he reportedly cooperated with investigators.
Joan Kagezi was gunned down on March 30, 2015, in Kiwatule, Kampala, while returning home with three of her four children. She had stopped briefly to buy vegetables when a man posing as a pedestrian approached her car, asked for directions, and shot her twice in the neck at close range. The assailant fled on a waiting motorcycle. Kagezi was rushed to Mulago National Referral Hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Her death shocked the nation and drew widespread condemnation. At the time, she was handling several high-profile terrorism and war crimes cases, including prosecutions related to the 2010 Kampala bombings.
Kisekka’s testimony was made as part of a plea bargain agreement with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). In exchange for his confession and cooperation, he pleaded guilty to murder, had terrorism charges dropped, and received a 35-year sentence later reduced to 34 years to account for time served on remand.
Before a panel of judges Justices Michael Elubu, Stephen Mubiru, Dr. Winfred Nabisinde and Celia Nagawa—Kisekka claimed the group responsible for Kagezi’s killing was paid $20,000 by an unnamed high-profile individual allegedly angered by her prosecution of sensitive, religion-linked cases.
Agasirwe’s continued remand marks a significant turning point in a case long considered cold. Although authorities have not confirmed additional arrests, sources close to the investigation suggest that more suspects could be implicated as the probe deepens.
Security analysts and legal observers say the case could have far-reaching implications not only for Uganda’s law enforcement hierarchy but also for lingering questions about who ordered one of the country’s most politically and judicially sensitive assassinations in recent memory.
