The Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court has convicted Agnes Nandutu, the Woman Member of Parliament for Bududa District and former State Minister for Karamoja Affairs, for the offence of dealing with suspect property.
The conviction was delivered by Justice Jane Okuo.
Court found that between June and July 2022, Nandutu received and retained 2,000 pre-painted iron sheets belonging to the government, marked “Office of the Prime Minister,” despite having reason to believe they had been irregularly obtained.
According to prosecutors, the iron sheets were part of a government programme under the Office of the Prime Minister aimed at supporting disarmament and community empowerment in the Karamoja sub-region.
The programme, funded under a supplementary budget of about Shs39.94 billion for the 2021/2022 financial year, involved the procurement of 95,044 iron sheets intended for distribution to vulnerable communities.
Evidence presented in court showed that following a presidential launch of the distribution exercise in Moroto District on June 13, 2022, a balance of iron sheets remained in storage at OPM facilities in Namanve.
Shortly after, Nandutu was informed that 2,000 iron sheets had been allocated to her, purportedly for landslide victims.
She accepted the allocation and facilitated their collection.
On June 23, 2022, Nandutu reportedly provided funds for transportation and instructed her political assistant to collect the iron sheets from OPM stores.
The consignment was initially taken to a private residence in Wakiso District, where she personally verified it, before being transferred to her home in Seeta, Mukono District.
Investigations later confirmed that the iron sheets were kept under her control.
During investigations in March 2023, Nandutu recorded a statement with police and led investigators to her farm.
A search conducted by the Evidence Response Team recovered 1,617 iron sheets. She failed to account for the remaining 383.
The court ruled that she knowingly received and retained government property that was not lawfully allocated to her.
“The accused had reason to believe that the property had been irregularly diverted from a public programme intended for vulnerable beneficiaries,” the court held.
She was consequently convicted of dealing with suspect property contrary to Section 21A(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act.
Following the ruling, the court cancelled her bail and remanded her in custody.
Sentencing is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 2026.
