Woman Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Stealing 1 Month old Baby

A 20-year-old woman is to spend the next five years in prison for stealing and kidnapping a one-month-old baby from a health facility in Kamwenge District, following her convictions by the High Court in Fort Portal. 

 

The court, presided over by Justice Vincent Emmy Mugabo on Monday, heard that Moreen Natukunda abducted the baby from its sleeping mother at Rwamwanja Health Centre IV in Nkoma–Katalyeba Town Council on April 25, 2025. 

According to the prosecution led by Harriet Adubango, the Resident State Attorney, Natukunda has been charged with two counts of child trafficking and stealing a child. The court was told that Natukunda took advantage of the fact that both she and the baby’s mother were admitted to the facility, where she was attending to a relative at the time.

Prosecution further told the court that when the mother woke up and found her baby missing, she alerted health workers, who reported the matter to police. A search was immediately launched, leading to Natukunda’s arrest and the recovery of the baby, who was later reunited with the mother. Natukunda pleaded guilty to the charges when she appeared before the court and later entered into a plea bargain agreement with the prosecution. She was sentenced to five years in prison on each count, with the sentences ordered to run concurrently.