Africa-Press – Uganda. A joint security operation mounted by counter-terrorism police, the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence [CMI], Internal Security Organization (ISO), and police operatives, have recovered a grenade, sub-machine gun magazine, and bayonet in a local bar in Busia Town.
The military equipment was recovered at Plan B Bar and Lodge in Sofia, Eastern Division following a sting operation.
Using sniffer dogs attached to the counter-terrorism police at the border, the team recovered the military hardware stashed in a bag. The grenade is said to belong to the Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF), while the bayonet is believed to belong to the Kenyan military.
Three people including the bar owner, his manager, and an associate were arrested, Mr Moses Mugwe, the Bukedi Regional Police Spokesperson, said.
“I can confirm that we have recovered a grenade, magazine for a sub-machine gun, bayonet, and arrested three people in connection to the matter,” he said.
Mr Mugwe, said that the suspects were first whisked to Busia Police Station before being transferred to Bukedi Regional Police headquarters in Tororo for interrogation.
“Our investigations are partly to ascertain whether the suspects are robbers or are involved in acts of terrorism,” Mr Mugwe said, adding that they have launched a frantic search for the gun and other military hardware.
Sources within the investigating team told Daily Monitor that bayonet ‘appears to belong to the Kenya military’, while the suspects may be part of criminal syndicates involved in cross-border crime.
The suspects have, however, denied having any knowledge of the military equipment, saying the bag had been left behind months ago by one of the guests at the bar.
By press time, the suspects, according to a highly placed source at Tororo regional police headquarters, had been transferred to the CMI headquarters in Kampala for further investigations.
