Opposition hooligans to blame for death of Bobi Wine's driver - police

Opposition supporters are to blame for the shooting and death of Kyadondo East legislator Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine driver Yasin Kawooya, police has said. 

Kawooya was shot dead yesterday Monday evening near Hotel Pacific in Arua town while driving a Toyota Tundra vehicle registration number UAT 416K.

The car is believed to belong to Bobi Wine, who appears not to have been in the vehicle at the time of the shooting. Shortly after the incident, Bobi Wine tweeted that his driver was shot dead by police, thinking they'd shot him instead.

Senior press secretary to the president, Don Wanyama published this photo of one of the president's cars that he claimed was pelted with stones by opposition supporters 

Bobi Wine and several other opposition MPs were in Arua for former Forum for Democratic Change MP Kasiano Wadri's final campaign rally. Wadri is contesting for the Arua municipality seat that fell vacant in June this year following the shooting of the area MP Ibrahim Abiriga. 

Now police spokesperson, Emilian Kayima says people dressed in Wadri's campaign T-shirts began pelting the presidents convoy with stones forcing security to open fire.
 
"At around 6:30 [yesterday] evening, the president's motorcade was attacked by hooligans at Prison Cell in Arua municipality as the president left Boma grounds where he had held the last rally for his candidate," Kayima said.

Adding that, "one of the president's lead cars was attacked and smashed by the hooligans donning T-shirts of Mr Kasiano Wadri. Security force quickly intervened to calm down the situation but the situation became riotous as many were throwing stones at the convoy of the president, which is unacceptable. Unfortunately in the scuffle one person was fatally injured."

West Nile police spokesperson Josephine Angucia said Kawooya was shot by a stray bullet, she however declined to divulge any further details. 

Scene of crime officers have since taken charge of the scene of shooting. It is still unclear who exactly between police and presidential guards fired the bullet that killed Kawooya. Police have also impounded a grader registration number UAP 064R that was being used by Wadri's campaign team.

The grader was impounded when it allegedly intercepted the president's convoy as he was heading to Boma Grounds to campaign for the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party candidate, Nusura Tiperu.

Kayima said "A number of suspects have been arrested for intercepting the president's convoys as investigations continue to establish their motive."

Several MPs including Paul Mwiru, Francis Zaake and NTV journalist Herbert Zziwa were arrested and are still under police custody. The whereabouts of Bobi Wine remain unknown as police denied holding him and his family in Kampala said they'd lost contact with him. 

Hotel Pacific sealed off

Meanwhile, following an evening of running battles between presidential guards, Special Forces Command and opposition supporters, Hotel Pacific the base for Wadri's campaigns has been sealed off including the nearby roads. 

Details of yesterday's chaos are still unclear but emerging reports indicate that some charged youth who were attending Wadri final rally with Bobi Wine near Arua Prisons, threw a stone at Museveni's vehicle as he was being taken to board his chopper at Pokea primary school soon after campaigning for Nusura Tiperu, the NRM candidate in the Arua municipality race.

Museveni reportedly ordered his driver to stop after a stone landed on his vehicle, but stopped his armed escorts from firing at the charged youth. 

"After seeing the president off, the soldiers returned looking for Bobi Wine whom they accused of organizing the youth to pelt stones at the president's car. They followed Bobi Wine up to Pacific Hotel and shot the driver thinking he was Bobi Wine," a source further added.

 

Another witness said the shooting of Bobi Wine's driver at Hotel Pacific happened 2km away on Adumi road, almost two hours later after the president's convoy had taken to Ediofe road. 

According to some of the witnesses of the chaotic incident, Bobi Wine and Wadri were whisked off on boda bodas. West Nile regional police commander Jonathan Musingunzi confirmed the arrest of Wadri but denied knowledge of Bobi Wine's whereabouts. 

 

 

When our reporter visited the scene of the shooting this morning, the armed soldiers could not allow anyone to access the road.

 

According to some sources URN spoke to this morning, the body of Bobi Wine's driver who was reportedly shot in the vehicle as he parked in front of the hotel is still lying within the hotel.

Source