U.S. couple faces death penalty in Uganda
2022.12.21 09:42
U.S. couple faces death penalty in Uganda
Budrigannews.com – The state prosecutor said on Wednesday that if a U.S. couple is found guilty of aggravated torture of a 10-year-old boy, they face the additional charge of aggravated child trafficking, which carries the death penalty.
Nicholas Spencer and his 32-year-old wife, Mackenzie Leigh Mathias Spencer, have been in custody in Uganda since December 9 after being charged with aggravated torture of a child who was living in their foster home in Kampala. That charge has been refuted by them.
The couple was also accused of “aggravated trafficking in children,” according to a new charge sheet that Reuters obtained on Wednesday. They have not yet filed a plea regarding that.
The Monitor, a Ugandan newspaper, quoted a lawyer for the couple as saying that authorities had no evidence and dismissed the case as a “fishing expedition.” She was cited as saying the new charge “doesn’t seem OK”.
Reuters tried to get in touch with a lawyer for them through the court and the prosecutors’ office, but it didn’t work right away.
According to the charge sheet, the couple is accused of recruiting, transporting, and keeping the child through “abuse of position of vulnerability for purposes of exploitation.”
Jacquelyne Okui, a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office, told Reuters on Wednesday that the couple could not enter a plea because the case can only be heard at the High Court. The new charge was read to them on Tuesday when they appeared in a magistrate’s court.
According to Okui, Spencer and his wife were placed in additional detention, and the date on which they will appear in the High Court to enter a plea to the new charge has not yet been set.
Okui stated, “We will begin the process of committing them to the High Court, but we cannot say when that will be finalized so they can be produced in court.” Okui was referring to the proceedings.
The first charge, aggravated child abuse, carries a maximum prison term of life.
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On Wednesday, a request for information was made, but the American Embassy in Kampala did not immediately respond. It stated last week that it was aware of reports of the arrest and detention of two Americans in Kampala and was keeping an eye on the situation. However, due to privacy concerns, it did not provide any additional information.
