The Director of Public Prosecution, Jane Frances Abodo has withdrawn charges of money laundering against human rights lawyer, Nichola Opiyo.
In a letter dated 10/09/2021, Abodo informs court that the Director of Public Prosecution Hs decided to discontinue the proceedings against Nicholas Opiyo.
It should be noted that on December 22nd 2020, Nicholas Opiyo was arrested by plain cloth security men.
Uganda Police Force then revealed on social media that Opiyo was in custody on suspicion of money laundering “and related malicious acts”.
The arrest was in relation to a sum of USD 340,000 (1.2 billion Shillings) which was channelled through an account in ABSA Bank.
He was detained with Anthony Odur, Simon Peter Esomu, and Herbert Dakasi, lawyers working for other civil society organisations, along with NUP’s Hamid Tenywa.
On December 31, 2020 Nicholas Opiyo was granted a Shs15million cash bail after more than a week in custody.
Opiyo is the Executive Director of Chapter Four, a leading non-profit legal and advocacy organisation focused on defending civil liberties, and has won several international awards for his work.
