By Akinyi Winiefred
Agufibo Morris, Acidri Gift and Avayo Francis, all residents of Arua City have been remanded to prison for possession of smuggled fuel.
Prosecution led by Brian Kisomose from the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions told the court that on May 8, 2024, the trio while in the different cells in Arua City were found in possession of 32.5 liters of petrol, contrary to sections 318 and 319 of the Penal Code Act CAP 120.
Avayo, aged 17 and his accomplice, Econi Louis Kagame, aged 16 appeared before her worship, Imalingat Christine, the senior magistrate of Grade One Arua, and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Kagame was granted bail after presenting two sureties, while Avayo was remanded to GiliGili Remand Home until May 15, 2024.
Relatedly, Agufibo, aged 23 years, and Acidri, 27, appeared before His worship Edgar Tukahabwa, the grade one magistrate of Arua, where they also pleaded not guilty and were remanded to Arua government prisons until May 31, 2024.
In addition to distorting market prices, fuel smuggling undermines revenue mobilization.
The practice is particularly rampant in the West Nile sub-region at Uganda’s border with South Sudan, as smugglers use porous borders to bring in uncustomed fuel.
Last year, URA signed a bilateral agreement with South Sudan’s National Revenue Authority in which they agreed to implement joint border patrols and surveillance operations along the borderline to address, among other things, fuel round-tripping which is rife at the border.
URA also conducts intelligence-led operations targeting fuel smugglers in the border districts in the sub-region.
According to Deogratius Kaleebi, the URA supervisor of customs in West Nile, over 8000 liters of smuggled fuel have been recovered in the region this year alone.
