On 30th July 2020, the Chief Magistrate of Kabale Chief Magistrates Court in Uganda sentenced Byamukama Felix, one of the suspects in the gruesome murder of Rafiki, Uganda’s rare 25-year-old silverback to 11 years imprisonment. Felix and others were charged with three counts of illegal entry into Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, killing a gorilla, and killing a duiker. In another file, Felix was charged with killing a bush pig, possession of bush pig, and duiker meat.
Felix pleaded guilty to all the counts. He was sentenced to 5,6 and 5 years imprisonment respectively on each of the counts in the first file and to 5 years imprisonment on each of the counts in the second file. The imprisonment terms in each of the files are to run concurrently. However, Felix will serve the 5 years in the second file after the expiry of the 6 years in the first file. He will, therefore, serve an imprisonment term of 11 years. His co-accused persons were further remanded for the hearing of the case against them.
Rafiki went missing from his Nkuringo group which he headed on June 1st, 2020. His body was recovered the following day. Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) revealed that a post-mortem showed that a sharp device or object was used to penetrate Rafiki’s abdomen and pierced his internal organs. Investigations led to the arrest of Felix and three others. The men confessed to the killing of Rafiki by a spear allegedly in self-defense while they were illegally hunting other animals in the park from where he charged on them. They were also found in possession of bush pig meat and several hunting devices which included a spear, rope snares, wire snares, and a dog hunting bell.
Worldwide, mountain gorillas are found exclusively in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Southwestern Uganda and the Virunga Landscape in Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Mountain Gorillas are endangered with only about 1,004 individuals surviving in the wild. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to almost half the global population, with 459 individuals as recorded in December 2018. The remaining individuals live in Rwanda and DRC.
Mountain gorillas are almost extinct because of a lot of human activities that threaten their existence. These include habitat loss, hunting, war and instability, and diseases.
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I’m not familiar with Ugandan law …. and I’m curious if the plaintiff in this case ever considered prosecuting the defendant for MURDER? I would really like to exchange opinions with the prosecution so that more severe penalties may result if this ever happens again!
Dear Richard,
Thank you for your concern and love for African Animals. I am sorry for the late reply. I have not been feeling so well. Kindly get in touch with me in my inbox gladyskama@yahoo.co.uk. We will discuss this in detail.
Thank you.
Gladys Kamasanyu
President and founder of Help African Animals.