A joint operation by Crime Intelligence and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) has led to the arrest of an 18-year-old suspect accused of kidnapping a two-year-old boy in Kampala and demanding a ransom that shockingly dropped from Shs30 million to just Shs20,000.
The suspect, Amani Justa, a Congolese national from Ruchuru District in the Democratic Republic of Congo, is said to have abducted the child, Ivan Benti, from a salon along Musajja-Alubwa Road in Mengo, where Amani worked as a cleaner. The salon is owned by the child’s mother, Margret Bangurize.
The abduction occurred at around 7:00 p.m. last Thursday. Investigations reveal that the child was taken across districts and hidden in Kisoro, including at Nyakabande Refugee Camp, as the suspect made ransom demands to the family.
According to Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire, the ransom requests kept fluctuating in a bizarre and suspicious pattern.
“The kidnapper started with a demand of Shs30 million, then reduced it to 25 million, 20 million, then 5 million—before absurdly settling on Shs20,000 claiming he needed food. This behaviour was disturbing and inhumane,” Owoyesigyire said.
Authorities were able to track the suspect’s movements, and with the help of cross-border coordination, Amani was extradited from the DRC and brought back to Uganda. He later led investigators to Nyakabande Refugee Camp, where the toddler was found unharmed.
Ivan Benti has since been reunited with his parents at Kampala Central Police Station, where the suspect remains in custody.Police say investigations are ongoing to determine whether the suspect had accomplices or links to a wider network.