A cloud of intrigue has engulfed Kampala’s high-end hospitality scene after a porter at Serena Hotel was remanded over the disappearance of $12,000 (about Shs 45 million) belonging to a South Sudanese general, an incident now exposing possible security blind spots within the facility.
William Ssemata, 39, was on Tuesday arraigned before Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court and charged with theft, allegations he firmly denied.
Grade One Magistrate Rophine Achayo ordered his remand to Luzira Prison as investigations into the high-stakes case continue.
The complainant, Brig Gen Aaron Jeremiah Balla Sudan of the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces, had just landed in Uganda from Malaysia via Entebbe International Airport on April 12, 2026.
He was reportedly carrying $12,300 in cash funds allegedly given to him by South Sudan’s President to purchase luxury gifts, including a wristwatch and Ugandan cultural artefacts.
Court heard that after exchanging $300 at the airport, the general retained $12,000, which later vanished under unclear circumstances shortly after he checked into Serena Hotel.
What has since gripped investigators is a narrow but crucial window of time.
Prosecution told court that Ssemata was among staff who received and screened the general’s luggage three suitcases and a handbag before being tasked to deliver them to the room. CCTV footage reportedly shows him handling the bags and entering a lift alone.
But in what is now the centre of the mystery, the lift unlike other parts of the hotel had no surveillance cameras, creating a blind spot at a critical moment when the money is believed to have disappeared.
A statement from the hotel’s assistant security manager, Moses Olowo, indicates that internal reviews and CCTV analysis identified Ssemata as the only staff member with direct and uninterrupted access to the luggage during that timeframe.
However, prosecution, led by state attorney Grace Amy, acknowledged that investigations are still ongoing, raising the possibility that more details—or even additional suspects—could emerge as detectives piece together what exactly happened in the surveillance gap.
Ssemata was arrested on April 18 and later handed over to Central Police Station before being produced in court. He denied the charge.
Magistrate Achayo remanded him to Luzira Prison until May 13, 2026, when the case will return for further mention before trial magistrate Ritah Kidasa.
As the case unfolds, attention is now turning to security protocols at the luxury hotel, with the unexplained CCTV lapse likely to come under increasing scrutiny.
