This morning, Uganda woke up to the terrifying news of the gruesome murder of former national boxing team captain Isaac Zebra Ssenyange, popularly known among his peers as Mando.
He was 39 at the time of his death, and he was in charge of general duties in the Uganda Boxing Federation (UBF).
After getting this terrible news, we sent our reporters to the scene of crime and to Mando’s house to tell us what really happened.
One of residents in Bwaise III, who declined to tell us his name told theGrapevine that, two cars of the drone type without number plates branched to a night parking spot in Bwaise, close to the deceased’s house at round 11:30pm.
They found the parking spot security guard only identified as Soldier boy. They reportedly put him on gunpoint and forced him to direct them to Mando’s house, he was bundled into one of the cars and they drove him to Mando’s house.
On reaching his house in Bugalani zone, the men never knocked on the door and made their way into the house before Mando’s wife, Mercy Munkukunsi could open for them.

Mercy told us that inside the house, they put her on gunpoint together with their son identified as Ssenyange Junior, a S.5 student.
“They were going to kill him, mistaking him for his father due to their striking resemblance,” she said.
Mercy further told our reporters that she told them her husband was not home, by then, Mando had already escaped through the back door of the house.
Unfortunately, the corridor he ran through had a dead end and he had to return to find another escape route, but while he was still trying to a way, he killers soon found him and shot him in the head several times until he died.
“His head was literally destroyed by the bullets,” an eye witness narrated.
Ssenyange Junior re-counted that, “I went to my bedroom because I was doing some work on my laptop, my dad was watching Museveni’s address where Kiwanda was the translator. Surprisingly, he heard some people breaking the glass windows, and he moved out to find out what was happening. The men were wearing black attires with masks on their faces.”
He disclosed that upon realising that they were looking for him, his dad ran to the corridor but he was shot, when he went down, they asked him who he was and he told them that he was Zebra Ssenyange.
Another resident who preferred to stay anonymous told our reporters that she heard lots of bullets being fired but before that, Mando had his hands raised in the air and sat down on the ground begging for mercy from the assailants, he even told them that he is a supporter of President Museveni hoping it would save him.
All that fell on deaf ears.

Zebra’s son Ssenyange Junior
Other targets
It is reported that two other people were targeted in this murder, but they were saved because they were not in their houses by the time the assailants went there. One is Mando’s young brother Twaibu Mayanja, who is also a boxer, another is boxing coach, Moses Katende.
Mando’s last days
When we talked to Councillor Lubega who declined to tell us his full name, he said that the deceased looked unsettled in the previous three days, particularly yesterday.
Lubega said that yesterday, on his way home in the evening, Mando got out of his car and greeted almost everyone he knew on the road to his home, something he very rarely did.
It was during this greeting that he jokingly asked him why he acted unusual, Mando told him that he was set to meet President Yoweri Museveni today Wednesday, December 30, 2020, to discuss matters only known to him.
He said that the fallen boxer told him that he was set to be accompanied to the Fountain of Honour by three other gentlemen, one identified as Nakabaale John and the rest unidentified.
Lubega also said that Mando was coordinating Emyooga funds for the youths in Bwaise, as well as training Special Forces Command (SFC) officers with boxing and self-defence tactics.
Links to Bobi Wine
It is reported that during the campaigns that led to the election of now NUP Presidential candidate Robert Kyagulnyi Sentamu alias Bobi Wine to the Kyadondo East parliamentary seat, Mando was part of Bobi Wine’s security detail. It is also reported that he came out publicly and showed his support for Kyagulanyi in the forthcoming 2021 general elections but at the time of his death, he had crossed to the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
Earlier today, Mercy, Mando’s wife, received a call from Museveni to convey his condolences.
There is currently heavy deployment of military and police at the crime scene and other parts of Bwaise.
Isaac Zebra’s body has been returned from Mulago National Referral Hospital to his home in Bwaise, and we have learnt that he will be laid to rest tomorrow at his ancestral burial grounds in Masuliita.
By Juma Ali and Norman Mwambazi
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