The High Court in Kitgum has acquitted a 14-year-old boy who was accused of aggravated defilement after ruling that the prosecution had failed to produce enough evidence to require him to defend himself.
Justice Philip Mwaka, in a ruling, said the prosecution had not established a prima facie case against the juvenile, identified in court documents only as R.O.D. to protect his privacy.
The prosecution alleged that on 1 September 2025, at Bobi “B” Cell village in Kitgum, R.O.D., who was HIV-positive, performed a sexual act with a five-year-old girl identified as A.P.
Beatrice Acan, the victim’s mother, had gone to a garden about one kilometre from her home at about 7 am on September 1 2025, and while there, she received a telephone call from Alfred Omona, the brother of R.O.D.’s mother.
Omona reportedly told her that Oscar Lubangatwero, A.P.’s 16-year-old brother, had said that R.O.D. was “doing bad things” with A.P.
Acan returned home at about 5 pm and found that R.O.D.’s mother, Florence Ayugi, and another woman had already taken A.P. to Kitgum Matidi Health Centre.
Acan did not go to the hospital that evening.
When A.P. returned, Acan examined her and said she saw no injury.
The girl was nevertheless given post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), as a precaution against possible HIV infection.
The following day, Acan took A.P. to hospital together with R.O.D.’s mother and the juvenile, where a doctor examined the girl and tested her for HIV. She was found to be HIV-negative.
Another doctor also examined her, including her genitals, and again found no evidence of injury.
Acan said she became satisfied that nothing had happened and informed police that she wanted the matter to end.
However, days later, the case was reported to police, which swung into action, arrested the boy, and had the case brought to court.
In court, Justice Mwaka also considered another account that A.P. had allegedly told her brother Oscar about an incident under a shea nut tree in their garden. But Oscar was never called to testify.
Justice Mwaka described this information as “second-hand hearsay”.
The second witness, Francis Okello, a clinical officer at Kitgum Matidi Health Centre III, told the court that he examined A.P. on 3 September 2025 as a suspected victim of sexual abuse.
His findings were that there was no evidence of sexual abuse and that her private parts were intact. He also took a blood sample, which tested negative for HIV, and prescribed PEP as a precaution in case she had been exposed.
The clinical officer also examined the suspect, R.O.D, and said his mental status was normal and that his genitals were “ok”.
Another witness was police officer Sam Masagwai, who investigated the allegations and said A.P. and her mother, Acan, led him to the scene, which he described as being under a shea nut tree.
But there was a major disagreement about where exactly the alleged incident had occurred because Acan told the court that the shea nut tree was about 10 metres from her home.
However, the police officer said it was about 70 metres away. Police also found no physical evidence at the alleged scene.
Masagwai further admitted that he had not interviewed Oscar, the 16-year-old brother from whom the original information was said to have come.
After the prosecution closed its case, R.O.D.’s lawyer, Sharon Awili, argued that the state had not established a prima facie case.
But the defence relied on the principle that the prosecution carries the burden of proving the charge and that an accused person remains presumed innocent unless proved guilty.
The state argued that its three witnesses had established all the necessary ingredients of aggravated defilement and that the case should proceed to the defence stage.
Court rejects Elvis Ssekyanzi’s bid to stop ex parte judgement in his Shs165m loan case
Before delivering his ruling, Justice Mwaka said the prosecution needed to establish four key elements before the juvenile could be required to answer the charge.
These were that the alleged victim was below 14 years, that the accused was HIV-positive, that a sexual act had occurred and that the accused had participated in it.
He found that the first element had been proved because A.P. was five years old but other elements had not be proved.
On the allegation that R.O.D. was HIV-positive, Justice Mwaka said the prosecution had failed to provide medical evidence proving it.
The clinical officer had described the boy in a medical form as a “known child living with HIV/AIDS” and referred to another file.
However, that file was not produced in court.
He said such information could not simply be presumed to be true and criticised the decision to take a blood sample from the juvenile without testing it.
“It was remiss of PW2 to draw a blood sample from the juvenile and simply neglect to test the sample,” he said, adding that this “exacerbates stigma”.
Justice Mwaka was equally unconvinced that a sexual act had occurred, noting that A.P. could not testify, even before the court could conduct a voir dire to determine whether she was capable of giving evidence.
He said Oscar, whose account was said to have started the chain of information, was also not called and the police officer did not interview him.
Justice Mwaka therefore concluded that the prosecution had failed to establish that a sexual act had occurred or that R.O.D. had participated in it.
“This court therefore finds that the prosecution has not established a prima facie case against the juvenile and the juvenile does not have a case to answer that would put him to his defence,” he ruled.
He then ordered the immediate acquittal of R.O.D.
The ruling means R.O.D. did not have to give evidence in his defence because the prosecution case failed at the stage where the court was required to decide whether there was a case for him to answer.
