Uganda court charges senior finance officials with corruption over central bank hacking JURIST News

pA Ugandan court on Wednesday charged nine senior officials from the Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development over their alleged involvement in corruption electronic fraud and money laundering in connection with a hacking incident that led to a financial loss of at least 21 million from the countrys central bankppThe hacking occurred last year and involved redirecting some payments from its intended beneficiary to different recipients according to the charges read in a magistrates court in the capital Kampala Last November State Minister for Finance Henry Musasizi confirmed the hacking of the central banks account and the Bank of Uganda said it was awaiting a police investigation into a news report that offshore hackers stole 62 billion Ugandan shillings 168 million from the central bank Ugandas police had detained finance ministry officials on February 5  as part of an investigation into accusations of hackingppThe chargesheet filed in magistrate court has a total of 11 charges against the accused out of which 5 charges are of corruption two charges of financial loss one for abuse of office two for electronic fraud and one for money laundering All these charges were charges under the AntiCorruption Act and The Computer Misuse ActppAccording to the charge sheet funds intended for the International Development Association IDA a World Bank affiliate as repayments for Ugandas loans were illegally redirected to companies in Japan Poland and the UK Court documents show that a 6134 million debt servicing repayment to the World Bank was instead sent to Road Way Company in Japan with the money landing in an account at MFUFG Bank on November 12 and 8569 million intended for the African Development Bank was paid to NJS International in London on September 28ppThe accused were the Accountant General in the Ministry of Finance Lawrence Semakula the acting director of Treasury Services and Asset Management Jennifer Muhuruzi a senior IT officer Tonny Yawe a systems IT officer Paul Nkalubo Lumala a senior accountant in the Treasury Services Department Deborah Dorothy Kusiima an accountant Judith Ashaba a research assistant Bettina Nayebare and an IT systems officer  Mark Kasiiku The court has issued criminal summonses against  Pedson Twesigomwe the assistant commissioner after she failed to turn up in court The group was not allowed to take a plea to the charge of money laundering as it is only triable by the High CourtppLawyer Max Mutabingwa who represented one of the suspects attempted to apply for bail but the suspects were denied bail and remanded in custody until February 18 when their case will be mentioned in the high court Due to the severity of the offenses which are only triable in the high court they were not allowed to enter a plea  Authorities will continue to investigate the full extent of the breach and whether additional individuals were involved in the fraudppCanada dispatch dual degree law students in Windsor and Detroit find themselves in the crossfire of a trade warppSCOTUS dispatch Supreme Court appears likely to side with straight women in reverse discrimination caseppThe Dangerous Decline of Expertise in Federal GovernmentppThe Art of Nonviolent Reform Returning and Preserving Americas Separation of PowersppPersistent sexist laws undermine global progress on womens rights despite some gainsppAmericas Immigration History is One of ExclusionAn Interview with Professor Aviva ChomskyppJames Earl Ray sentenced for the murder of Martin Luther King JrppOn March 10 1969 James Earl Ray was sentenced to 99 years in prison for the murder of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr Ray died in 1998 still seeking a retrial of his case

On December 9th 1999 a Memphis jury handed down a verdict agreeing with the King family that the 1968 assassination of the civil rights leader was a conspiracy rather than the act of a lone gunmanppGandhi arrested for seditionppOn March 10 1922 Mahatma Gandhi was arrested and charged with sedition for leading a campaign of mass civil disobedience against the British in India He was then convicted and sentenced to six years in prison After his release Gandhi continued to build Indian unity and use civil disobedience and noncooperation to oppose British rule in his country culminating in the Salt March of 1930 and eventual Indian independence in 1947

Learn more about Mahatma Gandhi from the government of Indiap