Security agencies have disclosed that the rampant robberies in Kampala in which people carrying huge sums of money are waylaid by robbers, are rooted within the banks from which the money is withdrawn, where the robbers get leads on the attire of targets, the amounts withdrawn, and their other identity details.
The particulars were unearthed during the attempted broad daylight robbery on Monday during which six robbers were shot dead by police along Acacia Avenue, as they allegedly lay in waiting to rob sh500m from a trader who had gone to withdraw the money from a bank on Acacia Mall.
According to Kampala Metropolitan police spokesperson, Patrick Onyango, police have been trailing the robbers for a long time, and added that the same people have been arrested over and over several times but being released on court bail.
Onyango said the team had eight people but that two managed to escape on seeing their colleagues shot dead.
Two were killed near Total filling station along Acacia Avenue, two were killed adjacent to the Kasasiro taxi stage along Old Kira Road, while the rest were shot along Mawanda Road as they tried to flee.
According to Onyango, the same group robbed sh100m from Fred Tibemanya at Maganjo, they robbed an unspecified amount from Francis Baraka in the Industrial Area, and robbed sh10m from Jamil Kamwewa, a Kampala car dealer.
The team leaders only identified as Sadik and Ashraf managed to escape, while among those killed were those identified as Sharif Lukwago, Innocent Tuyisabe, Maniriho Zaake, Michael Ssebakka, Khamis Muhammad, and Fahad Kaweesa.
Family members have variously claimed and collected remains of the dead men and taken them for burial in their respective home areas.
Asked why they were not simply disabled by, say shooting in the legs, Onyango said they were armed with machetes which they could have used to fight back.
He said these groups have been changing tactics, saying initially they used to kick their victims before grabbing money from them, and escaping on motorcycles, and that they were now advancing to use of weapons including machetes.