Police in the Rwizi region are investigating the gruesome murder of taxi driver Majidu Basajja, 42, whose body was discovered in River Rwizi weeks after he was reported missing in Ntungamo District.
According to Police, the deceased, a resident of Cell 4, Kahunga Ward in Ntungamo Municipality, was reported missing on May 11, 2026.
His disappearance triggered a search operation that lasted several weeks before parts of his body were recovered on May 31, 2026 in River Rwizi in Mbarara City.
Rwizi Region Police spokesperson Samson Kasasira said the victim was last seen on May 9, 2026, when he was allegedly picked up from his home by suspect Ali Mbazira, also known as Uwasabimana, 33, a fellow taxi driver.
Kasasira said the suspect reportedly told the victim they were travelling to Kabale to purchase a vehicle, but instead allegedly lured him to Bwenkoma A Cell in Rukindo Ward, where he was killed.
“The suspect, while in police custody, confessed to having killed the deceased with the help of two others in Bwenkoma A Cell. His body was cut into pieces before being packed into sacks and later dumped in River Rwizi along the Mbarara bypass,” Kasasira said.
Police further revealed that Mbazira was arrested on 19 May 2026 at around 5:00pm in Ntungamo Town while allegedly driving the deceased’s vehicle, a Toyota Super Custom registration number UAW 562C, which raised suspicion and led to his arrest.
Investigators say the two men were known to each other through taxi operations and vehicle brokerage businesses.
The suspect allegedly claimed that the deceased had defrauded him of Shs40 million intended for a “drone taxi” deal.
In a disturbing development, police confirmed that only the lower part of the body, from the waist downwards, has so far been recovered and taken to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital mortuary for DNA analysis, while searches for the remaining parts continue.
Two additional suspects, identified as Valence Mugisha and another known only as Black, both residents of Ruti Ward in Mbarara City South Division, are still at large.
Police say investigations are ongoing as efforts intensify to apprehend the remaining suspects and establish the full circumstances surrounding the killing.