Judge declares Desh Kananula not guilty as court of public opinion convicts him.

Judge declares Desh Kananula not guilty as court of public opinion convicts him.

Circumstances surrounding Badru Kateregga’s death at Panamera Bar on Sunday morning was not a one man’s show according to a blow by blow .

SpearNews brings an account of a person who claims to have witnessed the scuffle as posted by Halima Kiberu on a Facebook which only forms one side of the coin. Most probably the account Desh Kananula and colleagues gave another account which convinced the judge to declare them not guilty.

Eye witnesses’s account

On the fateful night, the workers of Panamera Bar were extremely busy with many customers. Among the customers was one Peter, a specialist in mixing cocktail who has worked at different bars including Cayenne Bar, Club Rouge, Kampala Casino and Panamera itself. The scuffle according to the eyewitness started between Desh and Peter. Peter, a former employee was sacked and told never to hang out at Panamera. At around 2:30am, Desh called his brother Raymond Kananura and told him to tell Peter to leave his bar. After being threatened, Peter left the bar and the guns were turned to Badru Kateregga who had interacted with him that evening. Kateregga whose task was to wash glasses at the bar had spent only 15 days in Kampala. Right away from Mbale, the young and innocent guy (RIP) got a job at Panamera with hopes of working very hard and become a tycoon like Desh but his dreams were buried on Sunday morning.

The 10,000/- tip

At 3:00am, Kateregga was subjected to thorough checking by Desh and found with Shs10,000 which he had borrowed from his pal Kenneth, a waiter to solve domestic problems. However, Desh thought Kateregga had served Peter booze and kept the money. At Panamera, all tips according to the bar boss of Indian origin, Paren are put in the tip box and counted as income for the bar since the workers are given transport.

Mob justice

He was dragged behind the bar and Desh started boxing him like a punching bag as the waiters, security operatives, bouncers and his brother Raymond witnessed. He later used a broom handle and blue water pipe to whip him. The eye witness says, Raymond Kananura and Cyrus, a bouncer at Steak Out who had been hired for a night at Panamera gave hand in hitting Kateregga like a snake. After a thorough beating, he was tied and taken behind Shawama Kitchen.

How Kenneth joined the Mix

Kenneth Kirenzi, the waiter who had given Kateregga Shs10,000 from the Shs40,000 tip he had got from the clients was equally searched and found with Shs30,000. He was asked why he did not declare it to Paren and there was no answer.

Instead of rewinding the 50 CCTV cameras to find out the truth, they started clobbering him like a terrorist. The security officers at the scene, Robert and Onyango joined the bandwagon of beating. Also active in action were Kazeyi, Desh’ clearing agent and one of Desh’ drivers called Matovu. Though Edgar, one of Desh’ relatives did not beat, he was cheering in the background.

The 9million Bank statement

They undressed Kenneth and searched in his trousers where they found a bank statement with Shs9m yet he had spent only two months at Panamera. Kenneth worked at Boda Boda, Barbeque Lounge and Mish Mash before joining Panamera and possibly he could have earned this much at those bars.

Kateregga scumb to a Painful death

According to this witness, he was also taken behind Shawana Kitchen and the old parked van where he found Kateregga crying and groaning like a person with few minutes on Planet Earth. Shortly, Kateregga fell and died. Desh told his henchmen to remove security lights and fetch water to bathe the body, hid it in the pork kitchen and covered it with old tyres. It is in this pork kitchen where the body was recovered by police the following morning. Desh ordered bruised Kenneth, whose eyes were swollen to shower and dance in what the eyewitness referred to as a mafia style of killing people.

Am a bad man

At 5:00am, Desh ordered Paren to push out the clients and close the bar. He called all the workers and ordered his security officers to search them thoroughly. While they were being searched, Desh asked them ‘do you know what I do for the government?’ “I’m bad man, mafia, no one f**ks around with my money. Do you know why KCCA cannot bring me down, I’m a bad man. I fear only my mom and Museveni but I also don’t fear them so much,” he said in American accent. Indeed in his bar there is a poster reading ‘I’m a bad man’. He dispersed them and ordered his driver to take a seemingly unconscious Kenneth to police and report that he had stolen Shs2m. After reporting the case, they were ordered to take him to the bank and ensure that he withdraws the money.

Police Swings Into Action

However, when Kenneth reached at Kiira Police Station to record a statement, he told police that ‘though I’m badly off, my colleague was killed’. Police swung into action and went to Panamera Bar. They found Raymond and Desh (in shorts) relaxing in the Lounge and asked them whether it was true someone was killed at the bar as the waiter (Kenneth) claimed. They denied of having any knowledge but said being a bar, they don’t account for the clients. Police mounted a search until when they discovered the bruised body which they took to Mulago Mortuary.

Police acted lazily

Police did not make any effort to have Desh jot down any statement like it’s a norm whenever a person is discovered dead at someone’s premises.

Though police cordoned off the bar structures, they did not bother to arrest the boss of the bar.

Confident Desh just sent an application (asking for a job) of Badru Kateregga through his driver to Police claiming that the deceased was not a worker at the bar but just asked for the job. Ironically, Desh forgot that the deceased was putting on uniform for Panamera workers. This coincided with the fact that he is close to one of the top officers of police.

With the discovery of the body, events changed and Desh’ driver could not take Kenneth to the bank to withdraw money. Kenneth, who had been joined by his colleagues, called his sister to take him for medication. Though Police claimed to have mounted a search for Desh on Monday, he was a very free man on Sunday evening. He was spotted at Kabira Country Club in a secret meeting with two other guys in a dark corner and this gave him ample time to plan and flee the country. Currently, he is believed to be in Dubai.

Meanwhile, the files CRB28/30/2012 and SD28/30/9, 2012 of manslaughter and assault were opened for him at Kiira Road Police Station as they wait for his arrest to take him to court.
Other workers beaten by Desh

Another waiter Bernard Kyaboona was equally thumped and left with a broken arm after finding Shs10,000 in his bag.

Earlier, Moses Baguma, a waiter at the same bar was beaten by Desh and driven to his home in Bukoto and told never to go back to Panamera.

Another barman called Robert was sacked after being flogged by the same man.

More People Beaten By Desh

It was not new for Desh and his brother to beat people at Panamera. On Wednesday, last week Raymond Kananura provoked the potential customers Arnold and Edwin, sons of a solicitor general and was beaten to pulp. The punch he got from Arnold sent him to the ground and the situation was calmed down by the onlookers and security.

Recently Desh beat up Denis Ssempebwa, a city businessman at Magic Parking and torn his clothes. Although Sempebwa rushed to CPS Kampala to report the case, Desh was not arrested.

It is not long when Desh brandished an electric wire from his Jeep with personalized number plate AK47 and caned a juvenile to coma in Luweero