A man suspected of participating in a phone robbery has been shot dead by police in Kampala after allegedly attempting to attack an officer with a panga during a chase. The incident happened near the Northern Bypass–Entebbe Expressway interchange, where police officers were responding to a robbery involving a university student.

According to police, the incident occurred on Friday, October 23, 2026, at around 7:30 p.m. The female student, who attends Metropolitan International University in Mengo, was reportedly travelling home on a boda-boda when she was confronted by a group of about four men armed with pangas.

The suspects allegedly grabbed the student’s bag, which contained two mobile phones, before fleeing from the scene. The student reportedly raised an alarm, attracting the attention of police officers who were conducting patrols in the area.

When officers responded, the suspects reportedly ran into a nearby swamp in an attempt to escape. Police pursued them, hoping to apprehend those suspected of carrying out the robbery and recover the stolen property.

During the chase, one of the suspects allegedly turned on a police officer and attempted to attack him with a panga. Police said the officer responded by shooting the suspect, who later died while being transported for medical treatment.

Following the incident, officers reportedly recovered a panga, a knife and the student’s bag containing the two mobile phones from the deceased suspect. The recovered items are expected to form part of the evidence in the ongoing investigation into the robbery and the events that led to the shooting.

Police said the identity of the deceased had not been established by the time the statement was issued. His body was taken to Mulago City Mortuary for a postmortem examination as investigations continued to establish his identity and trace the other alleged suspects involved in the robbery.

The incident comes amid increased police patrols and surveillance in areas considered vulnerable to crime within the Kampala Metropolitan Policing Area and other parts of the country. Investigators are expected to establish the full circumstances surrounding the shooting while efforts continue to identify the deceased and apprehend the alleged accomplices.