Robbers raid Rakai church, steal hymn books

Police in Rakai District are hunting for suspected robbers who broke into Kasozi Catholic Parish church in Rakai District and stole property worth millions of shillings on Thursday night. 
According to Sr Rose Gesare, a caretaker at the church, the robbers made away with radio speakers, amplifiers, hymn books and lighting system among other items.

“At around 5am, I woke up and went to organise the church for the morning prayers on Thursday, only to find the door wide open. I tried to switch on the lights but they were not working. I went back and informed the parish priest about what had happened,” Sr Gesare told this reporter on Friday.
According to Sr Gesare, the robbers vandalized all the doors and windows to gain entry into the church.
“It is absurd that the people can destroy the house of God and do whatever they want,” Sr. Gesare said.

This is the second such incident to be reported at the church in less than five months. 
“We have again gone back to zero like it was last year in November when they raided and stole everything,”Sr Gesare said.
The parish priest, Rev. Bernard Kasagga attributed the church raids to inadequate security in the area.
“The police post that used to be near the church was closed following the recent spate of police attacks across the country,” he said.
 Fr Kasagga said it was too late to trace the robbers by the time police deployed a sniffer dog.

“By the time the thieves broke into our church, we were in the process of hiring a local defense unit armed soldier to guard the place but we had not yet concluded the arrangement. However, this is something we are going to priotise this time round,” he added.
The officer in charge of investigations in Rakai District, Mr Joram Yeko said police are investigating the incident with the intention of arresting the raiders.
“We have not yet arrested any suspect but since these characters come from the community, our people must be having crucial information that can aid our investigations,” he said.