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Apolo Senkeeto Alias Kalyesubula Mark v Uganda (Miscellaneous Application No. 1 of 2025; SUP-00-CR-CNO123-2025)

Supreme Court · [2025] UGSC 56 · 2025 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for bail pending appeal to the Supreme Court, arising from Supreme Court Criminal Appeal No. 123 of 2025
Decision
Application granted; applicant released on bail pending determination of his Supreme Court appeal on stringent terms and conditions.

Observed later treatment

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Holding

On an application for bail pending appeal, the single Justice held that an applicant convicted by two courts is no longer fully protected by the presumption of innocence and must show exceptional or unusual circumstances. Personal credit factors such as being a first offender, breadwinner and having sound sureties recede when weighed against the seriousness of the financial offences and the prospects of success. However, the applicant proved a grave illness — chronic, intractable asthma unresponsive to treatment in custody — which the Court treated as an exceptional circumstance. Guided by the constitutional sanctity of life and to avoid rendering the appeal nugatory, the Court exercised its discretion towards liberty and granted bail on stringent terms.

Outcome

Application granted; applicant released on bail pending determination of his Supreme Court appeal on stringent terms and conditions.

Facts

The applicant was the country representative of a construction company contracted by the Uganda National Roads Authority to upgrade the Mukono-Kyetume-Katosi/Kisoga-Nyenga road. The roadworks were unsuccessful and the contract was reassigned. The applicant was indicted and convicted of theft of UGX 24,780,823,522, uttering false documents, and obtaining execution of securities by false pretense, and was acquitted of conspiracy to defraud. On appeal to the Court of Appeal he was partially successful: the theft conviction and sentence were set aside, but the convictions for uttering false documents and obtaining execution of a security by false pretense were upheld, carrying sentences of 2 years 3 months 19 days and 4 years 3 months 11 days respectively. He appealed to the Supreme Court and applied for bail pending that appeal, relying principally on a chronic, treatment-resistant asthmatic condition certified in a Prisons medical report, together with his clean record, fixed abode and sound sureties.

Issues

  1. Whether the applicant has demonstrated exceptional circumstances to warrant the grant of bail pending the determination of his appeal.
  2. Whether the applicant's chronic medical condition constitutes a grave illness incapable of adequate management in custody amounting to an exceptional circumstance.
  3. Whether the appeal is not frivolous and has a reasonable chance of success.

Orders

  • Bail pending determination of the appeal granted.
  • Before release, the applicant shall deposit cash bail of UGX 20,000,000 in Court.
  • The applicant shall have three sureties, each binding himself or herself non-cash in the sum of UGX 100,000,000.
  • The applicant shall deposit his passport with the Registrar and shall not apply for a new passport until final disposal of the appeal.
  • The applicant shall report to the Registrar on the last working day of every month from 31 December 2025 until disposal of the appeal, failing which the bail is liable to automatic cancellation.
  • Breach of any condition shall render the bail liable to automatic cancellation.
  • The Certificate of Title for land comprised in Kyadondo Block 244 Plot 2100 Mengo District shall be deposited in Court.
  • Counsel is advised to liaise with the Registrar to have the appeal fixed for hearing at the earliest opportunity.

Rules and key headnotes

Criminal Procedure — Bail Pending Appeal — Discretionary Nature
Bail pending appeal is not a right but is granted at the discretion of the court, exercised judiciously on the merits of each case.
Criminal Procedure — Bail Pending Appeal — Exceptional Circumstances After Two Convictions
An applicant for bail pending appeal who has been convicted by two courts is no longer wholly shielded by the presumption of innocence and has an incentive to abscond, so the conditions are more stringent and require the demonstration of exceptional or unusual circumstances.
Criminal Procedure — Bail Pending Appeal — Weight of Personal Credit Factors
Factors going to an applicant's credit, such as being a first offender, of good character, the breadwinner of his family and the offer of sound sureties, recede to the background when weighed against the seriousness of the offence and the likelihood of success of the appeal.
Criminal Procedure — Bail Pending Appeal — Grave Illness as Exceptional Circumstance
Grave illness amounts to an exceptional circumstance warranting bail pending appeal only where it is proved to be incapable of adequate medical treatment while the applicant remains in custody.
Right to Life and Liberty — Bail Where Detention Poses Risk of Death — Avoiding a Nugatory Appeal
Where incarceration poses a real risk of death due to a pre-existing medical condition, judicial discretion, guided by the constitutional sanctity of life, should tilt towards liberty so that the appellant survives to hear the outcome of the appeal and the appeal is not rendered nugatory.

Legislation cited (7)

Cases cited (9)

  • Arvind Patel v Uganda (Criminal Application No. 1 of 2003)
  • David Chandi Jamwa v Uganda (Miscellaneous Application No. 9 of 2018)
  • Henry Bamutura v Uganda (Miscellaneous Application No. 19 of 2019)
  • John Muhanguzi Kashaka v Uganda (No. 19 of 2019)
  • John Kashaka v Uganda (No. 18 of 2019)
  • Magombe Joshua v Uganda (No. 13 of 2020)
  • Magombe Joseph V Uganda (Supra)
  • Aryampa Jackson v Uganda (No. 4 of 2024)
  • Ojok John Bosco Olapakino v Uganda (No. 5 of 2023)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Apolo Senkeeto Alias Kalyesubula Mark v Uganda (Miscellaneous Application No. 1 of 2025; SUP-00-CR-CNO123-2025) [2025] UGSC 56 (23 December 2025)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.