KAMPALA — The Chief Magistrate’s Court of Buganda Road has ordered the extradition of retired Lieutenant Katungi Michael Mpeirwe to the United States, where he is wanted to face charges linked to drug trafficking, firearms and terrorism.
In a ruling delivered on Friday, August 28, 2026, Chief Magistrate Ritah Kidasa Neumbe found that an application by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) seeking Mpeirwe’s extradition had satisfied the legal requirements under the Extradition Act, Cap. 124.
The court consequently committed Mpeirwe to prison pending his extradition to the United States.
The extradition request was made by the Government of the United States, which seeks to have Mpeirwe surrendered to face trial before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
According to the extradition proceedings, Mpeirwe faces three charges in the US:
- Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine;
- Conspiracy to possess firearms, including a machine gun and destructive device, in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime; and
- Conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organisation, identified as Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación.
The Republic of Uganda, represented by the DPP, was the applicant in the extradition proceedings. The application was argued by Adrine Asingwire, a Chief State Attorney in the Office of the DPP.
Mpeirwe challenged the extradition application on several preliminary grounds, including the procedure used to commence the proceedings, the authority of the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and the Solicitor General to process the request, diplomatic immunity, and the DPP’s legal standing to conduct extradition proceedings.
The court dismissed all the preliminary objections.
On diplomatic immunity, the court held that such immunity applies only in the receiving state where a diplomat is accredited and does not extend to proceedings in Uganda or in third countries.
The court also affirmed that the DPP has the constitutional mandate under Article 120 of the Constitution to institute and conduct proceedings of this nature on behalf of the State.
The court further considered an affidavit previously filed in support of the extradition application by Michael D. Stanton. The affidavit had been expunged from the record after Stanton failed to appear for cross-examination.
Despite the removal of the affidavit, the court found that the remaining evidence, including an affidavit by D/SSP Kule Yona and authenticated documents submitted by the US authorities, was sufficient to meet the legal threshold required for committal under the Extradition Act.
Mpeirwe will now remain in custody pending the execution of the extradition order and his surrender to US authorities.
