The police investigators and pathologists have concluded that there was no any act of foul play in the drowning of two brothers in a septic tank in Kiteezi village, Kasangati town council, Wakiso District.
Claude Asiimwe 31 and his brother Frank Mbabazi 13, drowned on the ninth of this months in the afternoon hours. Much as there was speculation that the siblings could have been killed and thrown into the septic tank, detectives and postmortem examination have concluded that the duo’s death was caused by suffocation.
According to Assistant Superintendent of Police Luke Owoyesigyire, the deputy Kampala metropolitan police spokesperson, the matter has been closed and they will not charge anyone.
Owoyesigyire said investigations have proved beyond doubt that the brothers were emptying a septic tank using a diesel generator which was producing a lot of smoke. It is the smoke, according to police, that made oxygen access very difficult for the siblings who were inside emptying the septic tank.
“We could not take it further because it was accidental," Owoyesigyire said. "We could not charge anyone. At the time the incident happen, the parents were not at home. But we have established that these brothers often emptied the septic tank on their own,” Asiimwe and Mbabazi were sons of businessman William Kisembo who was not at home at the time the tragedy happened.
Police interviewed a number of neighbours who gave similar accounts that the family often emptied the septic tank on their own.
Owoyesigyire said it is very risky to empty a septic tank, cleaning an underground water well or water tank if you are not skilled enough. “We caution members of the public that if you don’t qualify to do such a job please, hire experts. We are told this was not the first time the family was doing that.”
