Uganda kindergarten killings renew focus on ritual child sacrifice

A Ugandan man admitted killing several children in what he described as a human sacrifice in a bid to gain wealth, during a court hearing in Kampala on April 8th, as reported by Africa News via Associated Press on April 9th, in a case that has drawn renewed attention to ritual killings in the country.

The suspect, Christopher Okello Onyum, 39, who holds Ugandan and American citizenship, appeared in court to face charges linked to the killings.

Prosecutors said he gained access to the kindergarten by posing as a parent before attacking the children with a knife.

Four children aged between 15 months and two and a half years were killed in the attack at the Ggaba Early Childhood Development Program kindergarten in Kampala, which caters for malnourished and vulnerable children. The indictment said Onyum had confessed to killing the victims in a recorded statement.

Prosecutors said a medical assessment found his thought processes were normal, but that he believed in gaining wealth through human sacrifice.

The indictment said he described the killings as a means of “fortune hunting or enrichment” and that he was mentally fit to stand trial, according to AFP via South China Morning Post.

The prosecution said evidence would show the attack had been planned over several days before he carried out what it described as a “violent and sustained attack” inside the facility.

The case has drawn public anger, with a crowd attempting to lynch him before his arrest. Relatives of the victims reacted in court, while Onyum did not respond.

Uganda’s army chief, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, said authorities would push for the death penalty. The suspect has been remanded in custody pending trial, for which no date has been set.

Ritual killings have been reported in Uganda in previous years, often linked to beliefs that human sacrifice can bring wealth or success. Organisations, including the Norwegian Refugee Council, have noted that children are frequently targeted, sometimes linked to beliefs that younger or “unblemished” victims are more effective.

Africa News via Associated Press, Agence France-Presse via South China Morning Post, Norwegian Refugee Council, Maghrebi.org