COURT (UGNEWSLINE) – The Court of Appeal has assigned three Justices to hear an appeal filed by Christopher Okello Onyum, who was sentenced to death for murdering four children at Ggaba Early Childhood Development Centre in Kampala.
The panel comprises Justices Christopher Gashirabake, Eva K. Luswata and John Mike Musisi, with Justice Gashirabake designated to lead the proceedings.
Onyum is challenging the High Court decision that convicted him on four counts of murder and sentenced him to death on each count on April 30, 2026.
The appointment of the panel comes about a month after President Yoweri Museveni questioned the delay in hearing the appeal, saying the public needed to see justice being done following the killing of the four children.
While addressing National Resistance Movement (NRM) Members of Parliament at Kololo on October 2, 2026, Museveni wondered why the case appeared to have stalled after the High Court had completed the trial.
Onyum, 39, was convicted by High Court Judge Alice Komuhangi Khaukha following a fast-tracked trial. The judge sentenced him to death after describing the killings as barbaric and among the rarest of rare cases.
The four children were killed on April 2, 2026, at the Ggaba Early Childhood Development Centre. They were identified as Gideon Eteku, Keisha Agenorwoth Otim, Ignitius Sseruyange and Rayan Odeke. The victims were aged between one-and-a-half and two-and-a-half years.
Dissatisfied with the High Court decision, Onyum filed a notice of appeal on May 6, 2026, indicating his intention to challenge both the conviction and the sentences. He subsequently filed a memorandum of appeal on June 12, 2026, setting out three grounds.
In his first ground, Onyum argues that the trial judge failed to properly evaluate the evidence presented during the trial, resulting in a miscarriage of justice.
He also contends that the judge did not adequately consider medical evidence relating to his mental condition during the proceedings.
In the third ground, he argues that the death sentences imposed on him were harsh and excessive.
He is asking the Court of Appeal to overturn his conviction, set aside the sentences on all four counts and order his release from Luzira Prison, where he is currently detained.
The appeal documents were reportedly prepared with assistance from the Uganda Law Society’s Legal Aid Project.
The newly assigned panel will examine the grounds raised by Onyum and determine whether the High Court decision should be upheld, amended or overturned.
