Mobile Money Robbers Take Over Luweero

A new wave of robberies and conmen targeting mobile money outlets have hit Luweero towns.

The Bank of Uganda (BOU) Annual Supervision Report 2013 indicates that the transactions across all Mobile Money schemes in Uganda is now over 18.6trillion shillings.

As result several people in Luweero and Uganda have set up mobile money shops to tap the market of this fastest way of banking and receiving money.

But because of availability of cash within mobile money shops and limited to no security, they have become key targets for robbers and conmen.

According to Police and Local Council reports, scores of mobile money outlets have been robbed in Bombo, Wobulenzi and Luweero town council in past three months.

The latest incidents involved Seamok, Kasana Mobile Money shop in Luweero town that were robbed a week and two days ago respectively.

At Kasana Mobile money, Aisha Turyanabu an agent was robbed of 280,000 shillings after armed thugs traveling in Ipsum registration UAV 593J attacked her with a gun. They went ahead to kidnapped her from the shop and later dumped her on at Kampala-Gulu Highway.

At Seamok Mobile Money Shop, Abbey Kaggwa the director explains that he lost two million shillings last week when a conman duped his worker with counterfeit money.

He adds the conman used a trick of attempting to deposit money on number that is out of service and in process of providing her another number, the worker deposited the money on their number which they speedily withdrew.

James Mwanje a regular mobile money user, explains that the conmen keep changing their tricks. He says they have gone as far as trying to steal the pin codes and IDs of clients to siphon money off their accounts.

The Regional Police Commander Musa Nabende admits that this sort of crime is new to the area. He urges mobile money agents to be vigilant and work with police.