Police in Nansana, Wakiso District, have arrested a 34-year-old Congolese national suspected of dealing in stolen mobile phones and facilitating their transportation to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The arrest followed investigations into the theft of an iPhone valued at about Shs3 million, which was reported at Nansana Police Station on April 21, 2026.
Police said tracing the stolen phone showed that it had been taken to Kalungi Plaza before being transported to Beni in the DRC.
Further intelligence reportedly indicated that the suspect frequently travelled to Uganda to buy stolen mobile phones, which were then transported to the DRC for resale.
On August 20, police received information that the suspect had returned to Uganda and was allegedly purchasing stolen phones from dealers at Kalungi Plaza.
A joint team of Nansana Police and intelligence officers subsequently conducted an operation and arrested him.
The suspect has been identified as Justine Kulimushi, 34, a Congolese national.
Police said they recovered 27 second-hand mobile phones of different makes and models from him. The devices had reportedly been factory-reset or flashed, allegedly to make it difficult to trace their original owners.
Investigators suspect the phones had been stolen from different parts of the Kampala Metropolitan area before being collected for resale to Kulimushi and other dealers.
Kulimushi remains in police custody as investigations continue to establish the source of the recovered phones, trace their rightful owners and identify other people allegedly involved in the suspected network.
Police have appealed to members of the public who have lost mobile phones to report to the nearest police station and provide details such as the phone’s make, model, identification number and other relevant information to assist investigators in recovering the devices.
