Ugandan police are investigating the reported disappearance of South Sudanese businessman Lual Malong Jr after his family said he was taken from a hotel in Kabalagala, Kampala, by men in military uniform.
Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire said the family filed a complaint at Kabalagala Police Station and told officers they had not heard from Malong Jr since November 14.
According to the family, the men arrived in two vehicles and removed him from his hotel room. Owoyesigyire said police were still trying to establish what happened and were working with other security agencies.
He also said Malong Jr was not in police custody.
The disappearance was first reported by Juba-based Radio Tamazuj, which quoted a relative saying hotel staff claimed Lual had been picked up by UPDF soldiers in two vehicles. The relative said the army had denied the allegation.
Brigadier Richard Karemire, the Uganda People's Defence Force spokesperson, denied that the army was holding Malong Jr. “I have no information about that individual being held by the UPDF,” he said.
The hotel has not been named publicly, and neither police nor the family has disclosed it.
