A witch doctor who appealed his 44 year jail sentence for kidnapping and maiming his neighbour's two year old daughter has been handed a life imprisonment sentence instead.
Three court of Appeal Justices led by the Deputy chief justice Richard Buteera concurred with the DPP to enhance Stephen Wasswa's sentence after they watched a video showing the senile condition that she was left in by Wasswa's torturing despite not dying.
The girl is now paralyzed with no mobility in her limbs ,can neither talk nor feed herself , roll or turn and currently is under the care of Kyampisi Children's home.
In March 2017, the then Masaka High court , Justice John Eudes Keitirima convicted Wasswa of kidnap with intent to murder the victim and handed him a 44 year jail sentence.
The convict appealed the sentence on ground that it was harsh and manifestly excessive.
However, the DPP filed a cross -appeal seeking to increase his sentence to life in prison for inflicting life threatening and long lasting scars to the victim.
Prosecution proved that Wasswa accused the victim's parents of poisoning his chicken and had threatened to inflict a calamity on them that they would l never forget.
On 19th July 2008, the victim went missing after going with her siblings to fetch firewood nearby and despite a search, she was nowhere to be found and Wasswa who had a shrine in Rakai district also disappeared from the village at the same time.
It was only after one and half years on 19thDecember 2009 that two good samaritans had a child making squeaky noise in the Bush which attracted their attention .
On a closer look, they found a child tied in a sisal sack dumped in bush at a place called Njagala Kasaali.
The victim was found with a half -tongue, had 14 visible deep cut wounds on her body and could hardly speak or walk.
She was taken for medical examination and it was established that she had half- tongue, her teeth yanked , fingers and toes cut and her private parts had been maimed .
Court also heard that while in hospital, Wasswa visited and blamed the good Samaritans for rescuing then a 4 year old girl.
Later Radio announcements were placed and the mother of the victim went to confirm that she was her daughter who went missing almost 2 years back .
The good samaritans who were taking care of the victim at the hospital were able to describe the man who visited and harassed them for rescuing the girl .
From their description, the mother of the victim was able to know that it was Wasswa, hence causing his arrest .
