Archival Sense
JF-Expert Member
- Dec 16, 2025
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Police have dismantled a suspected criminal hub along the Nakivubo Channel in Kampala, arresting 18 individuals during a joint security operation targeting urban crime hotspots.
The operation, carried out about two weeks ago, involved the police, the army, and enforcement teams from the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA). Authorities demolished makeshift shelters constructed from tarpaulins, plywood, and iron sheets along the drainage channel and nearby railway reserve land.
Security agencies say the structures had become a base for youths allegedly linked to a series of robberies and violent attacks, particularly along the Clock Tower stretch on Entebbe Road and surrounding areas.
Many of the shelters were marked with graffiti associated with street gangs, bearing inscriptions such as “De Baddest,” “Young Money,” and “Naye Ggwe Tontya?”, which investigators say point to organized group activity.
According to Kampala Metropolitan Police deputy spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire, the operation followed growing public concern over rising incidents of mugging, phone snatching, and attacks on motorists, especially during traffic congestion in the central business district.
“The operations targeted hotspots that the public had pointed to as infested by criminals,” Owoyesigyire said.
The 18 suspects are part of a broader crackdown in which 118 individuals were arrested across the Kampala Metropolitan Area in a single day. Police indicate that most of those apprehended are aged between 12 and 20 years.
During the operation, security personnel recovered items believed to have been used in criminal activities, including knives, hammers, and suspected narcotics. Investigators also uncovered a network involved in stealing vehicle number plates and demanding payment from owners for their return. A key suspect led authorities to the recovery of more than 100 stolen plates.
Police say the problem extends beyond Kampala, with similar incidents reported along Entebbe Road and in areas such as Kisubi, Mpala, and Abayita Ababiri in Wakiso District.
Nationally, police statistics show that nearly 10,000 suspects have been arrested since the start of the year in operations targeting crime. In Kampala, many of those implicated are young people, some of whom migrated from rural areas in search of work but ended up living on the streets.
Source - Daily Monitor
The operation, carried out about two weeks ago, involved the police, the army, and enforcement teams from the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA). Authorities demolished makeshift shelters constructed from tarpaulins, plywood, and iron sheets along the drainage channel and nearby railway reserve land.
Security agencies say the structures had become a base for youths allegedly linked to a series of robberies and violent attacks, particularly along the Clock Tower stretch on Entebbe Road and surrounding areas.
Many of the shelters were marked with graffiti associated with street gangs, bearing inscriptions such as “De Baddest,” “Young Money,” and “Naye Ggwe Tontya?”, which investigators say point to organized group activity.
According to Kampala Metropolitan Police deputy spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire, the operation followed growing public concern over rising incidents of mugging, phone snatching, and attacks on motorists, especially during traffic congestion in the central business district.
“The operations targeted hotspots that the public had pointed to as infested by criminals,” Owoyesigyire said.
The 18 suspects are part of a broader crackdown in which 118 individuals were arrested across the Kampala Metropolitan Area in a single day. Police indicate that most of those apprehended are aged between 12 and 20 years.
During the operation, security personnel recovered items believed to have been used in criminal activities, including knives, hammers, and suspected narcotics. Investigators also uncovered a network involved in stealing vehicle number plates and demanding payment from owners for their return. A key suspect led authorities to the recovery of more than 100 stolen plates.
Police say the problem extends beyond Kampala, with similar incidents reported along Entebbe Road and in areas such as Kisubi, Mpala, and Abayita Ababiri in Wakiso District.
Nationally, police statistics show that nearly 10,000 suspects have been arrested since the start of the year in operations targeting crime. In Kampala, many of those implicated are young people, some of whom migrated from rural areas in search of work but ended up living on the streets.
Source - Daily Monitor
