Gunfire residues were found on Kanyamunyu’s clothes- Witness

A witness has told court that gunshot residues were found on the clothes belonging to Matthew Kanyamunyu following the November 2016 shooting that saw child rights activist, Kenneth Akena succumb to gunshot wounds at Nakasero hospital.

On Friday, Robinah Kirinya a Principal Analyst at the Government Analytical Laboratory in Wandegeya told court that among the items brought to the laboratory for examination was a long-sleeved sky blue shirt, pair of trousers and coat.

“The clothes were subjected to an x-ray and found around the right-hand side of the trousers as well as the right-hand breast part of the shirt components of gun residue,”Kirinya told court on Friday.

She said that chemicals were applied on the clothes and nitrate particles were detected on the edge and inside the right pocket of the pair of trousers and on the right-hand breast part of the shirt.

In simple terms, the shot was fired from the right-hand side of the person who was holding the gun.

The expert also told court that the bullet according to examination was fired from a 0.22mm firearm such as a pistol or a revolver if the gunfire residues found on Kanyamunyu’s clothes are to go by.

Gunshot or gunfire residues are materials deposited on the hands and clothes of someone who discharges a firearm but cannot be easily seen by the naked eyes.

These can consist of both burned and unburned primer or powder components, combined with additional residues from the surface of the bullet, surface of the cartridge case, and lubricants used on the firearm.

Earlier, a police detective had told court that when they went searching for the killer gun at Kanyamunyu and her girlfriend Cynthia Munwangari’s homes in Butabika and Luzira respectively, they found nothing.

The detective said at Munwangari’s home, Kanyamunyu asked to be allowed to freshen up and he consequently removed his shirt that he left among the dirt clothes belonging to Munwangari.

The witness also told court that when they reached his home, Kanyamunyu changed the coat and trousers as he opted for new ones.

“During the case conferencing, it was resolved that we needed to get the clothes. We took the suspect back and found the shirt among the clean dresses in the wardrobe where at his home, we found the suit properly put in the wardrobe,” Detective Sergent Patrick Akunyu, 45 told court last week.

Matthew Kanyamunyu, the director Quantum Express Logistics and his girlfriend, Cynthia Munwangari are accused of the murder of  Kenneth Akena, a former child rights activist who was shot in  November 2016 at Lugogo and died a few hours later at Nakasero hospital from bullet wounds.

Justice Steven Mubiru is in charge of the case.