The International Crimes Division of the High Court has dismissed an application by city socialite Nasser Nduhukire, commonly known as Don Nasser, in which he sought to nullify his prosecution on allegations of torture and illegal rendition from Kenya to Uganda.
Nasser is currently facing serious charges, including aggravated trafficking in children and defilement. He had petitioned the court to halt the proceedings, claiming that he was abducted in Nairobi in September 2024 by Ugandan security operatives, tortured, and unlawfully transported back into the country.
However, in a ruling delivered on Thursday, Justice Dr. Andrew Bashaija, Head of the International Crimes Division, found no merit in Nasser’s application and ordered him to pay legal costs to the Attorney General.
“The applicant alleges that he traveled to Kenya using his national ID card. However, he does not proffer any proof of his allegation,” Justice Bashaija said, adding that Nasser failed to discharge the burden of proof required under Section 101 of the Evidence Act.
Justice Bashaija ruled that Nasser had failed to prove that he was in Kenya at the time of the alleged abduction on September 18, 2024. According to immigration records from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Nasser last officially entered Uganda via Entebbe International Airport on October 26, 2023, almost a year before the alleged incident.
While Nasser claimed to have traveled to Kenya using a national ID and to have been kidnapped from Staroot Apartments in Nairobi, no documentation such as interstate passes or border records were provided to support this claim.
In his sworn affidavit, Nasser alleged that he was blindfolded, tortured, including genital torture and illegally transported through the Malaba border. He further claimed he was held at various police stations before appearing in court on September 23, 2024.
The Attorney General’s office, represented by Chief State Attorney Joseph Kyomuhendo and Detective Police Constable Ruth Tumwikirize, denied all allegations, insisting that Nasser was arrested on Ugandan soil in Malaba and was neither tortured nor mistreated. Medical assessments, they said, found him mentally stable and physically uninjured.
“If the applicant was outside Uganda after October 2023, it would have been an undocumented stay,” the judge noted. “This undermines the very basis of his rendition claim.”
Nasser had sought several court declarations, including that his right to personal liberty was violated, the charges were unconstitutional, and that he was entitled to compensation. He also asked the court to hold the Attorney General vicariously liable for the actions of security operatives.
However, Justice Bashaija emphasized that Nasser’s case did not meet the threshold under Section 1(c) of the Extradition Act, meaning issues of extradition or rendition did not apply.
“The application has no merit, and the applicant is not entitled to any of the orders sought,” the judge ruled.
Nasser remains on trial under Criminal Case No. 979 of 2024 before the International Crimes Division. He and his co-accused, Promise Ateete, are charged with recruiting, transporting, and harbouring a 16-year-old girl between May 3 and May 27, 2024. The alleged crimes occurred in areas including Acacia Avenue, Tagore Living Apartments on Kayunga Road, and Kito Zone in Kira Municipality.
Prosecutors say the suspects used fraudulent means and abuse of power to exploit the girl’s vulnerability for sexual purposes. They also allege that Nasser defiled the minor, at times using narcotics such as cocaine to coerce her into sexual acts.
Both Nasser and Ateete are currently out on bail, and the case continues.
