Police have arrested Rose Turindamukama, the woman who was staying with 22-year-old TikToker Jovia Namuwulya before she was found murdered in Bukoto last week.
Turindamukama was reportedly tracked down and arrested by police detectives on Monday afternoon after investigators launched a search for her following Namuwulya’s death.
A video circulating online shows detectives questioning Turindamukama inside a house where she was reportedly found.
According to reports, Turindamukama allegedly left the scene after Namuwulya’s death and went to the home of a foreign national described as her boyfriend, where she reportedly hid.
The man is said to have consulted his lawyers before contacting authorities, who subsequently arrested Turindamukama.
During questioning, Turindamukama reportedly told detectives that Namuwulya was killed by a man identified as Muhammad, whom the two women had allegedly met hours before the incident.
However, police had not officially confirmed this account or publicly identified Muhammad as a suspect by the time of publication.
Namuwulya, who was also known on TikTok as Jovia1235, was found dead in a pool of blood inside her rented room in Mukalazi Zone, Bukoto I Parish, Nakawa Division, on August 20.
Police previously said Namuwulya’s relatives raised the alarm after she stopped answering their calls. The caretaker and her sister went to the room and noticed bloodstains through a window before accessing the premises and discovering her body.
Her body was subsequently taken to City Mortuary for a postmortem examination.
Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson Racheal Kawala had earlier identified Turindamukama as a person of interest after she could not be traced following the discovery of Namuwulya’s body.
Police said the two women had been living together for several months before the killing.
With Turindamukama now in custody, investigators are expected to establish what happened in the hours leading to Namuwulya’s death and determine whether other people were involved.
Investigations into the murder remain ongoing, and the allegations against Turindamukama have not been proven in court.
