One person has been killed and four others injured in Omoro District following four separate armed robbery incidents over the past month, in a wave of violence that has left security agencies struggling to make arrests or recover firearms.
Police say no suspect has been arrested and none of the weapons used in the attacks, including a police rifle stolen from an officer, has been recovered.
On May 11, unknown assailants took advantage of a heavy downpour and raided Lalogi Police Station at about 8:30 pm, attacking a 50-year-old officer, Beatrice Awor, attached to Lalogi Sub-county Police Station.
The attackers reportedly stormed her house, strangled and assaulted her before fleeing with her rifle.
According to police, Awor was seated inside her unit on a mat when the assailants entered and overpowered her.
‘The assailants managed to escape with gun No. UG POL 48014235-15938 containing 30 rounds of ammunition. A case of aggravated robbery was registered at Lalogi Police Station vide SD Ref: 14/11/05/2026 and now Omoro CRB 320/2026. Suspects remain unknown and our hunt is on to recover the gun,’ a police statement said.
Security sources say that on May 27, a businessman was robbed at gunpoint in Lalogi Town Council, less than 200 metres from the police station, and more than Shs 10 million was stolen.
Four days later, a food vendor survived a separate attack when armed men, reportedly three in number, sprayed bullets at her and a boda boda rider who had carried her from Rom Cell, Abuga Parish, Abuga Sub-county.
The vendor, identified as Gloria Ajok, who operates at Lacor Centre in For-God Parish, Gulu City, was robbed of her handbag. The boda boda rider survived with serious injuries after a bullet pierced through his stomach at about 10:00 pm, according to sources.
Before investigations into the June 1 shooting could conclude, residents of Koch-Ongako Trading Centre in Koch-Ongako Sub-county, Omoro District, were again shocked on June 3 when three armed men raided a mobile money shop and killed an agent before fleeing with an unspecified amount of cash.
The incident occurred a few minutes after 8:00 pm. Eyewitnesses said the attackers arrived on a motorcycle, parked in front of the shop, and pretended to be customers making a deposit before opening fire.
‘One of them remained on the motorcycle and two entered the shop, inside which two other clients were transacting,’ said Alfred Ojok, a boda boda rider at Koch-Ongako Trading Centre.
Ojok said the attackers shot the agent five times in the chest after he refused to hand over money.
‘The robber with the gun stood by the door and shot the agent multiple times. His accomplice went behind the counter and grabbed the money. The shots also injured the two other clients,’ he added.
The mobile money shop is located about 400 metres from Koch-Ongako Police Station.
Omoro District Police Commander Amiir Magulu declined to comment on the incident, citing ongoing investigations.
Another eyewitness, Christopher Okello, said the attackers were dressed in black jackets and caps and fled towards Koch Goma in Nwoya District.
He said the victim, Raymond Onen, was rushed to St Mary’s Hospital Lacor on a boda boda but was pronounced dead on arrival.
Police spokesperson for Aswa West, David Ongom Mudong, said the attackers used a Hero Hunter motorcycle and were armed with an AK-47 rifle.
‘The assailants were dressed in black jackets with caps. They used a motorcycle and an SMG AK-47 rifle and exited the scene unidentified through the back,’ he said.
Omoro Resident District Commissioner Emmanuel Okot said no suspect has been arrested and neither the stolen police gun nor the weapons used in the attacks have been recovered.
‘This is not the first time. Remember the May 11 incident when they grabbed a gun from Lalogi Police Station, and on the night of Eid, a businessman was robbed in Lalogi, and then the woman shot at in Abuga,’ Okot said.
Security agencies say joint operations by police and the UPDF are ongoing.
UPDF 4th Division commander Maj. Gen. Felix Busizoori earlier said the army was working with other security agencies to contain rising gun violence in the region, which has been linked to armed cartels operating across Lango, West Nile and Acholi sub-regions.
However, despite the operations, none of the guns used in several robberies in Gulu City and Gulu District have been recovered.
Police say a joint counterforce has been deployed to track the attackers, though details remain limited for operational reasons.
In Gulu City, a separate gun attack at LT Energy Petrol Station in Laliya Trading Centre left a security guard dead after three masked men stormed the station on May 5 and stole a firearm.
Ten days later, businessman Wilfred Ojok was shot dead in a separate attack at Paromo Cell, Awach Town Council, after armed men attempted to break into his shop.
Police say investigations into all incidents are ongoing as armed violence continues to spread fear among residents and the business community.
Past incidents
1.April 30. Michael Komakech, a mason in Gulu City robbed of Shs3 million by an armed boda-boda rider at Wii Layibi, a Gulu City suburb.
2. May 2: Armed robbers waylaid Morris Onen Onna and robbed him of his motorcycle, UG Boss registration number UFM 917 C, at For God, located about 500 meters from the St Joseph’s Cathedral in Gulu City.
3. May 4. Denis Kilama, a security guard attached to Corporate Security Ltd, is held for robbing Sh5 million from a businessman in Gulu City.
4. May 5. Fedenaldo Ocora, a boda boda rider, is robbed of his motorcycle registration UGD 940F by unknown gunmen Keyi ‘B’ Cell via Kabedopong trading centre.