Lira, Uganda – The Lira High Court has sentenced Opio Kenneth to a total of 45 years in prison for the kidnapping and murder of four-year-old Elizabeth Akello, a case that left the community in shock after the child’s skeleton was discovered in a forest two months following her disappearance.
Delivering her verdict on Thursday, Lady Justice Sarah Birungi Kalibbala found Opio Kenneth guilty of two capital offenses following a full trial. He was sentenced to 20 years for kidnapping with intent to kill and an additional 25 years for the murder of the toddler. The sentences will run concurrently, meaning he will serve an effective 25-year term.
The court further deducted the five years and nine days Opio spent on remand. Consequently, he will remain behind bars for 19 years, 11 months, and 21 days.
A second suspect, Isaac Okello, who earlier opted for a plea bargain, is serving 13 years.
The court heard that little Elizabeth Akello disappeared from a timber yard in Lira City East Division on April 8, 2021. Her family launched a desperate search, but their worst fears were confirmed two months later when her remains—reduced to only a skeleton—were recovered from a forest in Ayago Ward.
Following the sentencing, the victim’s mother, Delish Adero, expressed deep anguish, stating that she had expected Opio Kenneth to receive the death sentence.
"He killed my daughter painfully," Adero said, her voice heavy with loss. "Nothing will bring her back. I wanted him to die."
Justice Kalibbala, in her ruling, noted the gravity of the offenses against a defenseless child but considered the remand period and legal guidelines in arriving at the concurrent sentence.
