14 students in kabale arrested for attempting to burn Secondary School

Multiple Students Arrested for Alleged Arson Attempt at St. Barnabas Secondary School in Karujanga, Kabale District

At least 14 students from St. Barnabas Secondary School in Karujanga, Katuna town council, Kabale District, have been apprehended by authorities following their suspected involvement in an attempted arson incident on the school premises. The detained students are currently being held at Kabale Central Police Station while further investigations are conducted.

Located in close proximity to the Uganda-Rwanda border, the school witnessed a joint operation by the military and police forces in order to apprehend the 14 students. The arrest was made possible thanks to a tip-off provided by individuals within the school community who alerted authorities to the presence of a group of unruly students who were allegedly planning to set fire to the school.

A staff member, who preferred to remain anonymous, revealed that the detained students were senior four class students who were in the final stages of completing their exams. According to the staff member, the students resorted to extreme measures after accusing a teacher of confiscating their expensive smartphones, even though the students did not actually possess any such devices.

"The students demanded the return of their smartphones from a teacher, claiming that he had taken phones valued between shs 350,000 and shs 500,000. However, an investigation conducted by the administration revealed that the teacher did not have any confiscated phones in his possession. With less than a week remaining before their exams concluded, the students attempted to set the school on fire when the administration intervened," disclosed the staff member.

Upon learning of the situation, the school administration swiftly mobilized and sought assistance from both the military and the police to ensure the security of the premises.

Efforts to contact Mr. Alex Turinawe, the headteacher of the school, were unsuccessful at the time of reporting as his known phone numbers were unavailable.