RWAMPARA
The Police in Mbarara are holding a 27-year-old man on allegations of disguising himself as a woman to deceive men in bars and receive gifts from them.
Justus Ainembabazi, a resident of Kyeyare village, Rwampara district has been allegedly working as a barmaid in Kagongi sub-county where she masqueraded as a woman calling himself Keitesi Nyakato.
Things took a turn for the worse for Ainembabazi when the police tracked a stolen phone in his possession, leading to his arrest. It was during then that authorities discovered he was a man, not a woman, as he had been disguising himself for a long time.
Residents informed the police that Kawalya had been widely known in the community as a woman. He was allegedly involved in deliverance prayers, claimed to have healed many sick people, and was even an active member of the Mothers’ Union at the local church.
Mbarara District Police Commander, SP Esther Kayema confirmed the arrest of Ainembabazi noting that he is in detention pending court.
This is the second incident of a male disguising his gender to exploit men for financial or material gain. Last week on Monday, police in Nansana Municipality arrested Lian Komugisha Kawalya on similar charges after an anonymous man reported his suspicious behavior to local authorities.
It is alleged that Kawalya, who claimed to be on her menstrual period, was eventually discovered by the man to be male.
Upon interrogation, both suspects confessed to receiving various gifts and money from men by pretending to be in romantic relationships with them. They explained that they resorted to this scheme due to harsh economic conditions and pleaded for leniency.
