The sudden death of 23-year-old Martha Murari Ahumuza, a human resources manager and well-known Kampala socialite, has sparked a full-scale police investigation amid suspicions of possible poisoning.
Ahumuza collapsed at Mezo Noir Bar in Kololo during the early hours of March 20 and remained in a coma for over 24 hours before being pronounced dead at Kampala Hospital on March 21.
Superintendent of Police Tyson Rutambika, division Police commander of Kira Road Police Station, has opened case file CRB 308/2025 for suspected murder by poisoning, with evidence currently being analyzed by the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
According to police reports, Ahumuza’s final hours were marked by a complex web of relationships and deception. After attending aerobics and swimming at Speke Apartments on March 19, she spent the evening with her friend Dorreck Ampaire at Auras Bar and Lodge until midnight.
The pair then proceeded to the Lower Kololo Terrace residence of Eria Mubiru, described as one of Ahumuza’s intimate partners. While there, witnesses report that she spent much of her time messaging Edward Mugabo, another romantic interest who managed Mezo Noir Bar.
Around 1:00 a.m., Ahumuza reportedly told Mubiru she was heading home to Kira to collect office clothes, promising to return later. Instead, CCTV footage shows her arriving at Mezo Noir Bar at approximately 1:45 a.m. to meet Mugabo.
Security camera recordings from inside the establishment reveal Ahumuza and Mugabo were alone in the bar. Footage shows Mugabo serving her four shots of Jägermeister liqueur mixed with Red Bull. Investigators note that Ahumuza can be seen discreetly pouring some of her drink into a dustbin when Mugabo stepped away, after which he added more shots to her glass upon returning.
At 2:29 a.m., the pair walked hand-in-hand to the manager’s office, where police reports indicate they engaged in sexual intercourse. During or shortly after this encounter, Ahumuza lost consciousness.
Approximately one hour later, surveillance footage captured Mugabo making frantic phone calls before his brother, Joseph Kalisa, arrived in a black Mercedes Benz. With assistance from security guard Deus Niwamanya, they carried the unconscious woman to the vehicle and transported her to Kampala Hospital, where she was admitted in critical condition at 4:00 a.m.
Police have detained five individuals connected to Ahumuza’s final hours: Mugabo (the prime suspect), Kalisa, Mubiru, Niwamanya, and Ampaire.
Forensic teams have sealed off Mezo Noir Bar and collected critical evidence, including two bottles of Jägermeister, a glass containing yellowish liquid, a bedcover and a T-shirt from the manager’s office. The Government Analytical Laboratory in Wandegeya is conducting toxicology tests to determine whether Ahumuza was deliberately poisoned or suffered from alcohol-related toxicity.
Samples from a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc wine consumed earlier at Mubiru’s residence are also being analyzed for potential traces of drugs or toxins.
Ahumuza’s family, including her mother Barbara Murali Kagonyera who was in Dubai on business during the incident, has vowed to uncover the truth behind her death. The young socialite was laid to rest in Nyarubanga, Mbarara on March 23 following a funeral service at All Saints Church in Nakasero, Kampala.
