Man who defrauded NBS journalist of Shs 55 in a bogus land deal convicted

What the report says

Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court has convicted Moses Mugalya, also known as Musajjawaza Achileo Migadde, on charges of forgery, uttering false documents and obtaining money by false pretences in a land transaction involving an NBS TV journalist. The ruling was delivered on Friday by Chief Magistrate Neumbe Ritah Kidasa after the court found that prosecutors had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt, according to The Observer.

The case centred on a 2022 deal in which journalist Jamila Mulindwa Namuyiga paid Shs 55 million after being shown two plots in Kiwale, Nakwero, in Wakiso district. Court records cited by the paper say Mugalya presented himself as the owner of the land, supplied documents that appeared to support the sale, and received the full payment in stages. The transaction later fell apart when the paperwork was taken to the Ministry of Lands, where officials identified the titles as forged.

The court also heard testimony from a senior registrar of titles and from the registered owner of one of the plots, both of whom disputed the authenticity of the documents and ownership claims. Kidasa rejected the defence argument that the matter was only a civil land dispute, finding that the accused had made false statements about his identity and ownership. The court said his conduct showed participation in the fraud even without direct evidence of who physically made the forged titles.

Mugalya had denied the charges when he first appeared in court in 2022. The case is now expected to return for allocutus, when the convict may speak in mitigation before sentencing.