An American couple in Uganda, accused of torturing their 10-year-old foster youngster, might face the dying penalty if convicted of the most recent fees, prosecutors mentioned.
Nicholas Spencer and Mackenzie Lee Matthias Spencer, 32, had been arrested earlier this month and charged with two years of alleged abuse and aggravated torture that carries a life sentence if convicted.
Abubaker Lubowa/Reuters
They are going to be charged with aggravated youngster trafficking this week and face the dying penalty if convicted, Joan Keko, an lawyer on the Uganda State Public Prosecutor’s Workplace, confirmed to ABC Information.
The Spencers had beforehand pleaded not responsible to aggravated torture fees, The Related Press reported. They’ll be capable of file new fees as soon as the case strikes to excessive courtroom, in response to AP.
Keko mentioned the 2 had been held in a high-security jail in Rujila, a suburb of the capital, Kampala, and had been denied bail after being dominated prone to escape.
A Ugandan police assertion mentioned the couple allegedly “continually tortured” the foster youngster between 2020 and 2022, which “attracted the eye of neighbors” and known as the Kampala Metropolitan Police.
32-year-old American couple Nicholas Spencer and Mackenzie Lee Matthias Spencer stand on the docks of Buganda Highway Courtroom charged with torturing a 10-year-old boy December 14, 2022 in Kampala, Uganda.
Abubaker Lubowa/Reuters
In accordance with Kampala metropolitan space spokesman Luke Owoesigire, the kid was locked in an empty room with no garments, meals or water, and a medical report confirmed bruises on his physique. It’s mentioned that there was
Police acquired video proof from a neighbor and a nurse who had been checking on the kid, a Kampala police supply advised ABC Information.
In accordance with Keko, the Spencers are from South Carolina. Police mentioned they moved to Uganda in 2017 as volunteers.
The couple raised three youngsters, together with one who allegedly tortured them, in 2018 from a company known as the Wellcome Ministry within the metropolis of Jinja. They’ve moved to Higher Nagl, police mentioned.
Their work permits will expire in 2021, Keko mentioned.
Kevin Shalvey and Man Davies of ABC Information contributed to this report.
