A police dog has traced suspected thieves who broke into the Kaliro District MTN Service Centre and stole a number of telephone accessories and cash to police reception.
Mr Michael Kasadha, the Busoga North Police Spokesperson was, however, quick to explain that the dog on duty tracked two private security guards who were arrested and detained in connection to the alleged robbery.
“This is to put the record right that the police dog traced the suspected people involved in aggravated robbery in Kaliro Town Council to the Police counter where two private security guards had been held; it is not that Police officers were involved,” Mr Kasadha clarified on Thursday.
According to Mr Kasadha, the Kaliro MTN Service Centre was on Thursday broken into at around 4am, after which two private security guards attached to Wolves Security Group were arrested and detained as prime suspects.
“The two were arrested as prime suspects as they were guarding the centre when the incident occurred. One was armed with an SMG rifle loaded with 10 rounds of live ammunition; so, they were held at the Police counter where the dog traced them and gives us interest in our investigations of their possible involvement,” Mr Kasadha added.
One of the guards in his statement to the detectives said they were attacked by two people wearing black clothes who drugged them with suspected chloroform, and allegedly disarmed before the assailants broke into the MTN service centre and stole phones whose monetary value is yet to be established.
The guard had earlier reported the robbery and loss of his rifle and police, commanded by the officer in-charge of Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (CIID) visited the scene of crime and the sniffer dog led detectives to the Police station where he [guard] sat as he recorded his case before being detained.
The rifle was recovered from behind the premises housing the service centre where it had been abandoned.
Mr Charles Omuut, the Busoga MTN regional business operations manager, said there is a suspected pattern of robberies on their service centres and mobile money operators, where guns used by the security guards are abandoned.
Mr Omuut, who said this is the second attempt on the same service centre, added that they are getting a little suspicious of a coordinated robbery pattern on their business, citing Mayuge Centre, which was robbed a week ago, and the suspect was arrested in Lira.
“Last month, this same service centre was robbed of Shs32m and the suspects are detained at Nalufenya Police Station; and, again, there is involvement of security guards,” he said.
He, however, hailed the high sensitivity security instalments at their premises and machines, which he said makes it easy to track those involved.
