When the Truth is Stranger than Fiction

Ngumbito wasn’t well acquainted with the men who knocked on his door. He’d seen them around, they were his neighbors, but he didn’t know much about them. They asked if they could rent his motorcycle to move something. Ngumbito agreed. He had a family to feed and every little bit of money helped. The men paid him, took his motorcycle and left. A few hours later they returned with the motorcycle, as agreed.

The next morning, police came to Ngumbito’s house. They asked if the motorcycle was his. He said it was. He had nothing to hide from the police. They arrested him and took him to prison in another district. 

His alleged crime? First degree murder.

Turns out, those men who rented his motorcycle, had used it to drive to someone’s house and murder them. Then they disappeared after returning Ngumbito’s motorcycle. Someone had seen Ngumbito’s motorcycled in front of the house where the murder took place and informed the police. The police didn’t ask many questions. They charged Ngumbito with the crime and took him away.

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Penal codes in Uganda are similar to the ones in the US Constitution. No one can be held for more than 48 hours without being charged. They must have sufficient evidence of the crime to charge them. They are entitled to a fair trial. Sadly, this isn’t always the way things work.

Ngumbito is one of the leaders at the Isanja church. He leads singing every Sunday, gives announcements, and helps with children’s church. Right now, no one at the church knows where they took him. This might be the most frightening part of the whole story. None of the police they’ve talked to will tell his family where he is.

Prisons in Uganda aren’t the same as prisons in the US. Inmates aren’t guaranteed three meals a day here. They might not even get one meal unless a family member brings it for them. They can be beaten or mistreated. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen. 

Typically, a prison inmate’s wife or relative would bring him food, toiletries, and clean clothes. They’d need to visit several days a week. 

Trials can be put off for months. A person in prison for a petty crime might be incarcerated for several years simply because the judge doesn’t show up for their trial. It can take them months to work their way down the docket to that inmate’s case.

You can also be incarcerated with little to no evidence against you. Ngumbito is a case in point. 

Ngumbito is the man on the far right in this picture. If you think about it, please pray for him. Pray for those who are looking for him to find him soon. Pray that justice will be done and that he won’t be punished for someone else’s crime!