KAMPALA — Ugandan authorities have arrested former Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) officer Michael Katungi Mpeirwe, who is wanted in the United States over his alleged involvement in an international arms trafficking network accused of supplying weapons to a notorious Mexican drug cartel.
Security sources said Katungi was arrested on Saturday and remains in custody at the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) headquarters in Kibuli as Ugandan and U.S. officials finalize arrangements for his extradition.
Katungi is among four suspects named in an indictment filed before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The other accused are Bulgarian arms dealer Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, Kenyan national Elisha Odhiambo Asumo, and Tanzanian national Subiro Osmund Mwapinga.
According to U.S. prosecutors, the suspects allegedly conspired from around September 2022 to procure and supply military-grade weapons to Mexico’s Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), an organization designated by the United States as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
The indictment alleges the group planned to deliver a wide range of weapons, including AK-47 rifles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, sniper rifles, anti-aircraft guns, explosives, drones, night-vision equipment and other military hardware in a deal valued at approximately 53.7 million euros (about US$58 million).
Investigators claim Katungi played a key role in securing End-User Certificates and Delivery Verification Protocols that would allegedly be used to disguise the intended destination of the weapons. Prosecutors further allege he relied on connections in Africa to facilitate documentation required for the transactions.
Court documents also accuse the suspects of using falsified paperwork to conceal the true recipients of the weapons. In one instance, prosecutors allege documents indicated firearms were destined for the Tanzanian military, while investigators believe they were actually intended for the Mexican cartel.
The indictment further states that Katungi allegedly attended a meeting in London in April 2024 where he discussed acquiring firearms for future transactions and proposed using his regional contacts to obtain the necessary export documentation in exchange for a commission.
Financial records cited by prosecutors include several international money transfers allegedly linked to the operation, including payments made to accounts associated with the co-accused and a Bulgarian arms manufacturer.
The charges against the four suspects include conspiracy to traffic narcotics into the United States, conspiracy to possess and supply firearms in support of drug trafficking, and conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.
Three of Katungi’s co-accused have already been extradited to the United States from Spain, Morocco and Ghana respectively. Katungi had remained at large until his reported arrest in Uganda.
If convicted, the suspects face lengthy prison sentences, including the possibility of life imprisonment. U.S. prosecutors are also seeking the forfeiture of assets, proceeds and weapons allegedly connected to the conspiracy.
The case is being investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Special Operations Division.
The allegations contained in the indictment have not been proven in court, and Katungi, like his co-accused, is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty through the judicial process.