Four toddlers were stabbed to death at a daycare center in Kampala on Thursday, police said. The victims, aged two to three, were attacked at the Ggaba Early Childhood Development Program in the upmarket Ggaba district of Makindye Division.
Authorities say a male suspect gained access to the kindergarten by posing as a parent. Police say he had visited the facility on two previous days and tried to enroll his child. On Thursday he spoke with the daycare director, paid admission, and then launched the attack. The motive is under investigation.
Local residents tried to lynch the suspect as he attempted to flee, but a security guard from a nearby church detained him. Police and military personnel later arrived, fired warning shots to disperse the crowd, and arrested the man. A police spokeswoman confirmed the four juveniles “died on the spot.”
Inspector General of Police Abas Byakagaba attended the scene and urged calm, asking anyone with information to contact police. Videos circulating on social media showed distraught parents outside the cordoned-off nursery seeking information about their children.
Police said 14 children were at the kindergarten during the incident. Four bodies were taken to a mortuary and the remaining ten children were reunited with their parents.
Edited by: Saim DuĊĦan Inayatullah