Police in the Greater Masaka region are investigating two separate homicides after the body of a 16-year-old female student was recovered by the roadside in Masaka City, alongside another victim found dead in neighboring Kalungu District.
The deceased student has been identified as Rayati Nassali Nakato, a Senior Four candidate at Masaka Secondary School and resident of Nyendo Township.
Preliminary police reports indicate that Nakato departed her home around 10:00 am on Sunday, August 9, intending to collect academic revision materials from a friend’s home in nearby Kako Village. However, later that afternoon at approximately 4:30 pm, Nakato contacted her twin sister, Sharifah Babirye, to inform her that she had instead traveled to Nabugabo Sand Beach. Concern grew among family members shortly after when her phone switched off and remained unreachable.
The search ended tragically on Monday evening when residents traveling along the Nyendo-Kako Road-a route connecting to Nabugabo Sand Beach-stumbled upon the teenager’s body lying along the roadside.
Southern Regional Police Spokesperson Twaha Kasirye confirmed the incident, stating that homicide detectives have commenced formal investigations. He noted that preliminary examinations revealed visible bruises around the victim’s neck, raising strong suspicions that she may have been sexually assaulted before being murdered and her body discarded. Mr Kasirye urged parents to maintain close supervision over their children’s movements and avoid allowing minors to travel unaccompanied.
The brutal killing of Nakato adds to a troubling pattern of targeted violence and mysterious deaths recorded across the Greater Masaka region in recent months. Security agencies in the area have faced heightened scrutiny following a series of similar attacks where victims, particularly young women and night travelers, were intercepted, murdered, and dumped in isolated spots along major transport corridors.
In a separate but neighboring development, police in Kalungu District are probing the death of an unidentified man locally known only as Richard. The victim was last seen on Monday night at a local drinking establishment in Kapere Cell, Lukaya Town Council, before residents discovered his corpse dumped by the roadside early Tuesday morning.
Both bodies were subsequently conveyed to the Masaka Regional Referral Hospital mortuary for postmortem examinations as police intensify efforts to apprehend the perpetrators behind both incidents.