Balondemu granted bail
KAMPALA.Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s court has granted a Shs 5 million cash bail to Kampala District Land Board chairperson, David Balondemu, who is facing charges of forging medical documents.
Chief magistrate Ronald Kayizzi granted the bail after finding all three of Balondemu’s sureties including his wife, sister, and brother-in-law to be substantial. The court also ordered each surety to execute a non-cash bond of Shs 20 million.
As part of his bail conditions, Balondemu’s passport was retained by the court, and he has been prohibited from travelling outside Uganda without prior permission.
State prosecutor Viola Tusingwire had opposed the bail application, arguing that Balondemu had ignored seven court summonses, even after criminal summons were published in newspapers. However, magistrate Kayizzi ruled that newspaper notices do not guarantee effective service, agreeing with Balondemu’s defense that he may not have seen the summons.
The case has been adjourned until November 26, 2024, for a hearing. Additionally, the magistrate extended an arrest warrant for Balondemu’s co-accused, Dr Hassan Ssegujja of Mulago hospital, and instructed police to arrest him immediately upon sight.
Prosecutors accuse Balondemu, along with Dr Ssegujja and others still at large, of forging medical documents in 2023. Specifically, the charges allege that the duo falsified a prescription form dated November 7, 2023, and a CT scan form dated June 12, 2023, both purportedly from Kampala Hospital.
Balondemu was arrested on October 11, 2024, at Entebbe International Airport in connection with this case. His legal troubles began in 2023 when he was arraigned at Buganda Road Magistrate’s court on charges of conspiracy to defraud, involving the fraudulent acquisition of $553,000 (about Shs 2 billion) from KG Unlimited LLC.
The funds were obtained under false pretenses that Balondemu and his accomplices would secure a government contract for supplying agricultural drones and fertilizers to the ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries, a contract that did not exist.
Previous fraud allegations
This recent arraignment follows another legal battle in which Balondemu was charged at City Hall Magistrate’s court for defrauding a Korean investor in a bogus gold deal worth Shs 2.2 billion. Those charges, however, were dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
In 2023, while applying for bail at Buganda Road court for the fraud charges, Balondemu submitted medical documents indicating that he was due for surgery at Kampala hospital, which he cited as grounds for seeking temporary release. The state, represented by Ivan Kyazze, conducted an investigation into the authenticity of these documents.
Evidence presented by Kampala hospital’s chief executive officer, Dr Peter Kibuuka, revealed that Balondemu had never been a patient at the facility, nor was he scheduled for the surgery he claimed.
“According to our records, Mr Balondemu has never been a patient at Kampala Hospital. There is no scheduled TURP surgery on November 22, 2022, for Balondemu, as indicated in the letter dated November 7, 2023. The documents dated June 2, 2023, and November 7, 2023, were not issued by Kampala Hospital,” wrote Dr Kibuuka in his response to the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID).
As a result of these findings, forgery charges were brought against Balondemu. Magistrate Winnie Nankya had previously warned him that if the medical documents were proven to be falsified, he would face additional charges. Following this, Balondemu was formally charged and remanded for forgery.
