Today in History: Kanyamunyu Fatally Shoots Kenneth Akena in Lugogo

What the report says

Nile Post reports that on this day in 2016, Ugandan social worker and child rights activist Kenneth Akena was shot and later died after an incident in a parking lot outside Game Stores along the Kampala-Jinja Highway in Lugogo. The case drew major public attention because it grew out of a reported parking dispute and because the people later linked to the shooting initially appeared to be helping the injured man reach hospital.

According to the article, investigators connected the case to businessman Mathew Kanyamunyu, his girlfriend Cynthia Munwangari and his brother Joseph Kanyamunyu. Prosecutors alleged that Kanyamunyu fired the shot after a minor traffic-related disagreement. The three were arrested in November 2016 and charged with murder, and the proceedings became one of Uganda’s most closely watched criminal cases.

The report says the case moved slowly through the courts and attracted further attention when the family pursued reconciliation efforts through Acholi cultural elders. In November 2020, Kanyamunyu entered a plea bargain with the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, and was later sentenced to five years and one month in prison. The murder charge against Munwangari was dropped.

Nile Post says the case became a significant test of Uganda’s justice system and highlighted the role of traditional reconciliation practices in public debate. Kanyamunyu later completed his sentence and was released in April 2024, according to the article.