Mercy Timbitwire Bashisha, 38, whose video of an altercation with a traffic police officer went viral across social media, has today October 21, 2024 been remanded to Luzira prison until November 4, 2024.
The incident took place on October 18, 2024, at the traffic lights in Lugogo along Jinja Road.
Timbitwire, who serves as a Public Relations Officer at the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Secretariat, along with her accomplice, Benardine Abangira, faces charges of robbery, assault, and multiple traffic violations.
The courtroom was bustling with traffic officers eager to see the woman who had assaulted one of their own.
Many of them applauded the magistrate’s decision, emphasizing the importance of motorists treating officers on duty with the respect they deserve.
Prosecution alleges that on the day of the incident, Timbitwire was driving recklessly while using her mobile phone near Makerere University Business School (MUBS) in Kampala and ignored the instructions of a police officer on duty.
Later, at the UMA showgrounds in Lugogo, she and Abangira reportedly assaulted Police Constable Charles Makawa while he was performing his official duties, all while driving a Land Cruiser that lacked a valid third-party insurance license.
In addition to the assault, Timbitwire is accused of stealing two mobile phones from PC Makawa, valued at Shs800,000, as well as an EPS printer belonging to the Uganda Police Force, worth Shs14 million.
Abangira faces charges as an accessory for allegedly assisting Timbitwire in evading justice despite being aware of her actions.
