$600000 gold scam:Head of Kampala Land Board freed on bond
$600000 gold scam:Head of Kampala Land Board freed on bond
David Balondemu, the chairperson of the Kampala District Land Board, and Geoffrey Mkwe, his co-accused, have been released on bond.
Rehema Nassozi, a grade one magistrate at City Hall court, discharged the two this week. Along with businessmen James Jeff Mugisha and Godfrey Mabirizi, they are accused of conspiring to swindle and of using false pretenses to obtain money from a Korean investor.
The state prosecution claims that between March and November 2021, the accused individuals and others who are still at large received $600,000 (about Shs 2.2 billion) at the offices of Balondemu and Company Advocates on Parliamentary Avenue in Kampala. According to reports, they staged the sale of 53 kg of gold to Hyun UK Kim, a Korean investor.
The defendant, who made several court appearances last month, refuted the allegations. Through the representation of Caleb Alaka, Evans Ochieng, and Mukasa Mbidde, their respective attorneys, they requested bail. Balondemu, who was the primary suspect, contended that he was a court officer with substantial and irrefutable legal experience.
He listed a number of people as his sureties, including his wife Slyvia Bahizi, who works at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB), businesswoman Betty Nakayima, who deals in chemicals with Sunrise Luxury SMC, and Dr. Richard Lukandwa, a consultant physician at the Medical Hub. Richard Collins Kiberu is the managing director of C and C Investments and Goldmark Property Limited.
The prosecution, represented by state attorney Mercy Yamangusho Khaidarah, contested the bail requests, claiming that the accused’s release could compromise unfinished investigations. Nassozi granted the attorneys’ requests for bail after determining that the sureties were substantial.
Balondemu and Mkwe were mandated to pay Shs 20 million in cash, and their sureties had to sign a Shs 200 million non-cash bond. They were also prohibited from leaving the nation without a judge’s approval and required to surrender their passports with the court.
The prosecution requested an additional remand until November 15 so that they could check the documents submitted in their bail application and provide an update on the status of their investigations. The co-accused were the first to be detained and taken to jail.
The verdict was given in front of a packed courtroom full of Balondemu supporters wearing white t-shirts with his image and name on them along with the words, “We need Evidence and Justice for Balondemu David.”
Detectives from the State House Anti-Corruption Unit apprehended Balondemu, who was held for three days at the Special Investigations Department in Kireka before being brought before the court and being sent to Luzira prison, where he was held for sixteen days.
There have been accusations of collusion with suspects in gold frauds involving a number of Kampala law firms. These companies, however, insist that their only accusation is that of offering legal services to their clients.
