A Ugandan team of investigators has arrived in Warsaw, Poland to inquire into a ‘fake arms deal’ that saw Polish entrepreneurs conned of 500,000 Euros.
The team comprising of officials from External Security Organisation (ESO), Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) and Police’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) are to hold meetings with officials from BMP Poland SP Z.o.o Company as investigations zero in on the shadowy transaction.
Sources say the investigators are to meet the BMP Poland officials who traveled to Uganda and reportedly engaged in a series of meetings with ‘top army officials’ in a purported arms transaction at Bombo army barracks.
Meanwhile, EagleOnline has learnt that whereas the team is yet to conclusively get the much needed information from the officials in Warsaw, here in Kampala, the investigators have made a breakthrough as both suspected fraudster Sam Ssimbwa and a one army Captain David Muhoozi, have cooperated with SIU and revealed how the deal was transacted.
“We are on progress and we have made great breakthrough as both suspects acknowledged the transaction of the deal. However, we are waiting for our colleagues to return from Warsaw before a report is made to the authorities,” a source at SIU told EagleOnline.
According to the sources, Capt. Muhoozi, said he only transported the BMP Poland SP Z.o.o company officials to Bombo while Ssimbwa said he knew and partook of the deal right from the start.
According to sources, in September last year, conmen disguising as Ministry of Defence procurement team invited officials of BMP Poland SP Z.o.o for a meeting in Bombo, the headquarters of Land Forces.
The organisers, some of them dressed in military uniform, assured the top managers of the Polish company that government was planning to procure a big cache of weapons in a deal worth Euros 71 million, the sources added.
After the meeting, the Poles allegedly came out contented, knowing they would get the deal and were to pay Euros 7,000 for bidding documents.
Sam Ssimbwa, the alleged lead negotiator, who said he was using his company Prima Investments Uganda, later assured the Poles that he was going to negotiate and ensure they get the deal.
BMP Poland SP Z.o.o later gave powers of Attorney to Prima Investments to negotiate the deal. Ssimbwa later went to Equity Bank and secured a bank guarantee and BMP later wired over Euros 500,000 to the company’s bank account in Equity Bank to cover bond security for the deal.
