KAMPALA, Uganda — The Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court has remanded former Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) officer Michael Katungi Mpeirwe to Luzira Prison as Uganda begins extradition proceedings following a request by the United States government.
Mpeirwe, 48, appeared before Chief Magistrate Ritah Neumbe on Monday after he was arrested on a warrant issued in connection with a U.S. extradition request. The court ordered that he remain on remand until July 10, when the extradition application will be heard.
According to court documents, the United States is seeking Mpeirwe’s extradition to face charges contained in an indictment issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. He is accused alongside Bulgarian national Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, Kenyan national Elisha Odhiambo Asumo, and Tanzanian national Subiro Osmund Mwapinga.
The indictment alleges that the four conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing or intending that it would be unlawfully imported into the United States. Prosecutors also accuse them of conspiring to possess firearms, including machine guns and destructive devices, in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.
U.S. prosecutors further allege that the accused were involved in a transnational network that sought to supply military-grade weapons to Mexico’s Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), which the United States has designated as a foreign terrorist organization. The alleged weapons included machine guns, rocket launchers, grenades and other military equipment.
During Monday’s proceedings, State Attorneys Adrian Asingwire and Joan Keko told the court that the extradition request is based on the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. They explained that Mpeirwe had been brought before court to indicate whether he consented to extradition.
However, defence lawyer Musa Nsamba objected to the proceedings, saying his client would challenge both the extradition request and the legal process.
“The respondent strongly objects to the proceedings and the entire extradition process. We intend to raise preliminary objections on points of law,” Nsamba told the court, adding that neither he nor his client had been provided with the documents upon which the state intended to rely.
The defence also sought bail, arguing that the prosecution had yet to file a substantive extradition application. The prosecution countered that the proceedings were still at a preliminary stage and requested time to formally present the legal basis for the extradition request.
In her ruling, Chief Magistrate Neumbe held that Mpeirwe’s appearance was intended solely to commence the extradition process and secure his attendance in court. She declined to grant bail, directing the prosecution to file its formal extradition application by July 1 and ordering the defence to respond by July 7 before adjourning the matter to July 10.
The case follows the arrest and extradition of Mpeirwe’s co-defendants from other jurisdictions, according to U.S. authorities. Under Ugandan law, the ongoing proceedings will determine whether the legal requirements for extradition have been met and do not determine Mpeirwe’s guilt or innocence. He remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
