🔴 Anthony Natif notes from Court: The witnesses in the case Uganda Vs Molly Katanga and Others

SPECIAL REPORT | ANTHONY NATIF |   The witnesses so far in the case Uganda Vs Molly Katanga; adapted from @TonyNatif on X.

The matter resumes tomorrow Monday, September 29th.

Here’s a continuation of the witness testimonies thus far:

Prosecution Witness 6: Ronald Mugabe Ruranga

He was allegedly the Legal Counsel to the late Henry Katanga; except he wasn’t licensed to practice law.

He claimed to be Katanga’s personal friend and legal advisor for 17 years, based out of
Cooperative Alliance offices on Nkrumah Road.

He testified that in the final days of his life, Henry Katanga requested to meet him, but they never met as scheduled on November 2, when Katanga was reported dead.

Mr Ruranga told court that Mr Katanga never revealed to him what he wanted to discuss but that Mr Katanga’s sister, Naome Nyangweso told him after the passing of Henry that the reason Henry wanted to meet him was so he could help him write a will.

He spoke of the numerous transactions and matters in which he had been Mr Katanga’s lawyer.

On cross exam, the defense set out to discredit him extensively. They presented official documentation from the Chief Registrar of Courts confirming Mugabe is not an enrolled advocate in Uganda.

Mr Mugabe couldn’t produce his license to practice law in Uganda. He didn’t have.
He couldn’t provide court a single transaction he ever did as Katanga’s lawyer.

He said he knew Henry Katanga so well that he knew his three names. Henry Machwa Katanga. Except the middle name isn’t the late Katanga’s.

When put to task to provide any legal documentation, land transfer forms, or contracts with his name, he had none. This, despite claiming he had drafted numerous documents for Katanga.

The defense impeached Mr Mugabe’s testimony and said it was tainted by credibility concerns. His role appears to have been of minimal evidentiary weight

PW 7. Dr. Richard Ambayo

Dr Ambayo was the first “expert” witness in this trial.

He is a (forensic*) pathologist in Uganda Police and told the court that he conducted the late Katanga’s autopsy.

He said Martha Katanga, the deceased’s daughter identified the body

Going into the pathologist’s testimony, there had been numerous media reports that the deceased had two bullet wounds, with the claim that one can’t attempt suicide by shooting themselves in the leg and then the head.

There were also claims that Mr Katanga was right-handed and therefore couldn’t have shot himself on the left side of his head.

The pathologist confirmed that the claim that Mr Katanga’s body had two bullet holes was false. He confirmed to court that the deceased died from one shot to the head. He had no defense injuries

He testified that the shot was fired at close range but could not conclusively state who pulled the trigger. He said he couldn’t rule out suicide as a possibility.

On the controversy as to whether the deceased was shot on the left side or right side of his head, the pathologist said he had been shot to the left. The import being that since the deceased was right-handed, it wasn’t likely that he used his left hand to shoot himself.

This particular claim was fiercely contested, with the defense bringing textbooks and gunshot wound literature showing the entry was on the right side of the head. The prosecution objected to tendering of this literature, but Judge Isaac Muwata ruled for the defense.

There was also the issue of the level of the bullet entry hole in relation to where the projectile hit the wall upon exit from the deceased’s head. The projectile hit closer to the ceiling of the bedroom. This is in line with the defense’s argument that the bullet entry hole was to the right and not to the left because the hole on the right is lower than the one on the left. If prosecution’s claim was right, common sense dictates that the projectile should have hit the floor not the ceiling.

The defense also argued that Dr Richard Ambayo wasn’t a qualified forensic pathologist

Dr Ambayo’s statement that he couldn’t rule out suicide was repeated later in the trial by the ballistics expert Nassawali and the GSR expert.

*****

UgandaVsMollyKatanga

The matter resumes on Monday (29/Sept).

Here’s a continuation of the witness testimonies thus far:

Prosecution Witness 6: Ronald Mugabe Ruranga.

He was allegedly the Legal Counsel to the late Henry Katanga; except he wasn’t licensed to practice law.

He… https://t.co/0cPUZOOXio pic.twitter.com/ijFY0QHsOp

— Anthony Natif (@TonyNatif) September 26, 2025