Barbie Itungo Kyagulanyi, the wife of opposition leader Bobi Wine, is currently receiving medical treatment at Nsambya Hospital after a violent night raid on their home in Magere, Wakiso District.
Speaking from her hospital bed, a visibly traumatised Barbie described how dozens of armed men stormed the residence late at night while she was alone.
“At around 10:30pm, I had dinner and locked the house because I was alone,” she said. “Our secretary then alerted me that armed men had broken in again, but this time they were many and dressed differently from those who usually come.”
Fearing evidence would be destroyed, Barbie attempted to record the incident.
“I opened the veranda door to get at least a video because I knew once they entered, all evidence would be taken away,” she explained.
Moments later, the attackers forcefully entered the house, breaking doors and windows.
“They were many—big men, muscular, very tall, all looking the same,” she said. “Every window had about seven men peeping through.”
She said the men appeared highly organised and heavily armed.
“Each one of them was armed. I have never seen such firearms—new, fresh,” Barbie said.
The situation escalated when the attackers demanded access to her phone.
“He came from behind, knelt, and told me to give him my phone and remove the password. I refused,” she recounted.
She says she was then violently assaulted.
“They lifted me off my feet, my shirt buttons broke. One of them grabbed my hair, lifted me, and smashed my head on the floor.”
Barbie said she lost consciousness and later regained awareness outside the house.
“When I came to, I was lying on the veranda in a pool of vomit. They were gone.”
The attackers reportedly looted the home, stealing electronics and vandalising property.
“They took phones, laptops, chargers, airpods, power banks, woofers, radios—everything,” she said. “They destroyed doors, windows, pulled down the TV, overturned beds, and scratched the walls.”
Barbie believes the attack was politically motivated, noting that the men repeatedly questioned her about her husband.
“They kept asking, ‘Where is your husband?’ and threatened to beat our round table if I didn’t answer,” she said.
She says the trauma and injuries from the ordeal forced her to seek hospital care.
“That night was terrifying. These were not ordinary thieves. This was a group of murderers,” Barbie said.
