Police in Uganda have arrested businessman Rtd Captain Charles Byaruhanga in connection with the fraudulent sale of land belonging to companies owned by the late businessman Dr James Musinguzi Garuga. The land in question is Block 1004 Plot 2, Freehold Register Volume LUW 38 Folio 3, located at Bulemezi-Ngoma in Nakaseke District. Byaruhanga is expected to face charges at Makindye Chief Magistrates’ Court.
According to police, the transaction was executed on July 16, 2025, barely three weeks before Garuga's death on August 6, 2025. The charge sheet indicates that Byaruhanga, along with lawyer Agaba Maguru and businessman Henry Hapa Nganwa, participated in the execution of a sales agreement and transfer documents without a valid board resolution or lawful corporate authority. This allegedly occurred in defiance of a Supreme Court injunction.
The Supreme Court had already become involved in the Incafex dispute, with a 2023 injunction central to the police case. In Incafex Limited v Rukikaire, Civil Application No. 8 of 2023, decided on November 17, 2023, the Supreme Court recognised its inherent power to preserve property pending the implementation of a special audit and consequential orders. The Court's injunction aimed to prevent the fruits of an earlier judgment from being rendered nugatory.
The corporate fight took another dramatic turn in July 2026 when the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) Registrar of Companies ruled against disputed appointments that had placed Maguru in control of the Garuga-linked companies. In Mathew Rukikaire v Garuga Properties Limited and Others, decided on July 24, 2026, Assistant Registrar of Companies Daniel Nasasira ordered the expunging of disputed resolutions and Company Form 20 filings appointing Maguru as a director of Garuga Properties Limited, Kinkizi Development Company Limited, and Incafex Limited.
The URSB ruling found that a shareholder had not been properly notified of the extraordinary general meeting at which the disputed appointment was made. Consequently, the meeting convened without the required notice was deemed null, and the resulting filings had been wrongfully obtained and were liable to be removed from the Companies Register. The disputed appointments of Maguru in the three companies were consequently ordered expunged.
Garuga's death on August 6, 2025, at the age of about 72, was followed by a bitter struggle over control of his companies and estate. He was a prominent businessman, lawyer, farmer, property investor, and political figure, widely known for his investments in agriculture and business, as well as his role in Uganda's opposition politics. At the time of his death, Garuga was associated with major business interests, including Kigezi Highland Tea.
With Maguru and Nganwa still being hunted, investigators appear determined to bring all the principal suspects before court. The charges against Byaruhanga include fraudulent transfer of title, conspiracy to defraud, issuing false corporate statements, and disputed company records. The police case further states that the suspects purported to exercise corporate powers without the necessary board authority.
Key points
- Police arrest Rtd Captain Charles Byaruhanga for fraudulent land sale
- Two other suspects, Agaba Maguru and Henry Hapa Nganwa, are still being hunted
- The case involves a Supreme Court injunction and disputed corporate appointments
