Police in Kamuli District, Eastern Uganda, are holding a 43-year-old businessman dealing in charcoal, and doubles as a Parish Development Model (PDM) chairperson, for allegedly defiling a 13-year-old primary five pupil.

Police said Mohamad Jingo, a resident of Mbulamuti Town Council in Kamuli District, placed a phone call to his victim, whose conversation was eavesdropped by the mother. The mother later stealthily followed his actions.

Busoga North Police Spokesperson, Michael Kasadha, said preliminary investigations suggest that Jingo seduced the girl at his charcoal stall and communication between the two only became easier when her mother bought for her a phone.

“Jingo got the girl's contact and would call her to pick charcoal during which he seduced and defiled her three times,” Kasadha said on Wednesday, June 5.

Jingo was netted on a night the victims mother had just returned home from Kampala.

The mother said she pretended not to know anything, although she had been receiving information that her daughter was being "spoilt by a PDM chairperson".

After the mother went to report the matter to detectives at Mbulamuti Police Station, she said she returned to an empty bed.

She then asked her daughter's playmates who are said to have confided in her to check at Jingo's place where she was found and Jingo was immediately arrested.

Upon seeing the daughter, the mother expressed fear that she could be infected or pregnant. The pair have, however, been examined pending further investigations.

In the meantime, police have urged parents to take all necessary steps to safeguard their children against situations that endanger their lives, especially when they avail them with communication gadgets.