City socialite Sulaiman Kabangala Mbuga recently returned from Sweden after serving a short term jail sentence.
The mystery businessman was arrested by Interpol in February 2018 in Dubai and jailed for about eight months in Al Awiir Central Jail.
He was released on medical grounds by a judge in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) but then extradited to Sweden.
He returned home on Saturday after prosecutors in Stockholm failed to produce enough evidence pinning him to the alleged crime.
Back home, his wife Vivienne Angela Chebet was charged with six counts of obtaining money by false pretense and money laundering. She was later granted bail in April after two applications; the first denied because she had jumped bail in Sweden where she had been indicted on fraud charges.
The couple’s problems, however, stem from an allegation that they had defrauded an elderly Swedish businessman called Hillar Sten Heinsoo of over Shs20b.
Sten was the financial advisor and account signatory of Erinar Matsson AB, a family company owned by Anders Rank, Marianne Rank and Stefan Rank.
Mbuga and Chebet have since denied the allegations.
Watchdog Uganda is in possession of documents of the breakdown of remittances made by Heinsoo to account numbers owned by Vivienne/Angella Chebet, a one Muhamad Mbabali and a briefcase company fully owned by Mbuga called SkyCargo Net and Security.
Heinsoo, who has since been found guilty of ‘disloyalty to principal’ and given a four-year jail sentence by the Stockholm City Court, is said to have loaned himself the money from the accounts of his bosses; Anders, Marianne and Stefan Rank.
From Marriane, he stole Kr26,200,000 (Shs9.7b), Kr19,500,000 (Shs7.2b) from Anders and Kr1,100,000 (Shs411m) from Stefan.
The first transfer from any of the Rank’s accounts to any of Heinsoo’s accounts in Nordea and SEB banks was made on July 27, 2015. The account numbers are 5295-2939829 and 5295-0004717 (SEB Bank) as well as 4603254931 in Nordea Bank.
What is intriguing though is that Sky Cargo Net and Security’s two accounts in Barclays Bank, Lubowa branch, Quality Supermarket Mall ie USD6004704132 and UGS6004704116 were both opened on May 30, 2015, a day before Heinsoo made his first deposit of Swedish Krona Kr431,070 – about Shs161,016,596 – on June 1, 2015 from his Nordea Bank account.
The Sky Cargo Net and Security dollar account was to later receive 44 deposits worth Kr44,006,856 (about Shs16.4 billion) until November 10, 2016 (Kr749,908 or Shs280m) only 16 days to Mbuga and Chebet’s lavish wedding ceremony.
“All are cited to support that Heinsoo transferred approximately Kr53,000,000 (Shs19,798,224,127.52) to Chebet and another’s bank accounts in Uganda,” a document from the Stockholm City Court reads in part.
Chebet’s Barclays bank account number 6004031944, opened on February 8, 2013, received Kr448,562 (Shs167.8m), kr495,710 (188.8m) and Kr305,706 (Shs114m) on March 3, April 9 and May 26, 2015 respectively.
As for Mbabaali, investigators say his account was used as a conduit to receive funds from Heinsoo.
“He holds account number 0150017086 with united Bank of Africa and the account balance as at 65.95 as at January 31, 2018. He once received a wire transfer of USD87,000 from Stein Heinsoo on 12/05/2015. This was followed by a cash withdraw USD86,500 and USD450 on the same day 18/05/2015. His account did not any (sic) funds since then to date,” another document received by Watchdog Uganda reads in part.
“This possibly implies that he has been advised to open account as conduit to receive funds from Stein Heinsoo in future as he hands it over to the master as witness from the single batch withdraw.”
Below is the breakdown of the monies wired by Heinsoo to Chebet, Mbuga and Mbabaali between March 30, 2015 and November 2016.
To Angella Vivienne Chebet (Barclays Bank Account number 6004031944)
March 30, 2015 – Kr448,562 (Shs167.8m),
April 09, 205 – Kr495,710 (188.8m)
May 26, 2015 – Kr305,706 (Shs114m)
To Muhamad Mbabaali (Bank of Africa Account Number 0150017086)
May 08, 2015 – Kr723,974 (Shs270m)
To Sky Cargo Net and Security (Barclays Bank Dollar Account Number 6004704132)
June 1, 2015 – Kr431,070 (Shs160.8m)
June 15 – Kr412,415 (Shs153.8m)
June 24 – Kr373,797 (Shs 139.5m)
July 2 – Kr72,189 (Shs26.9m)
July 8 – Kr253,710 (Shs94.7m)
July 24 – Kr920,277 (Shs343.5m)
July 24 – Kr368,496 (Shs137.5m)
July 28 – Kr280,749 (Shs104.6m)
August 4 – Kr537,688 (Shs200.7m)
August 10 – Kr238,523 (Shs89m)
August 31 – Kr781,890 (Shs291.9m)
September 22 – Kr 589,211 (Shs219.9m)
September 23 – kr658,962 (Shs246m)
October 7 – Kr249,249 (Shs93m)
November 6 – Kr1,157,270 (Shs432m)
November 13 – Kr256,498 (Shs95.8m)
November 26 – Kr1,250,348 (Shs467m)
November 27 – Kr122,925 (Shs45.9m)
December 3 – Kr487,291 (Shs182m)
December 11 – Kr386,034 (Shs144m)
December 22 – Kr1,279,645 (Shs477m)
December 29 – Kr986,116 (Shs368m)
January 7, 2016 – Kr51,659 (Shs19m)
January 12 – Kr42,962 (Shs16m)
January 28 – Kr455,641 (Shs170m)
February 1 – Kr533,789 (Shs199m)
February 25 – Kr941,083 (Shs351m)
February 26 – Kr986,263 (Shs368m)
February 29 – Kr2,326,151 (Shs868m)
March 7 – Kr624,578 (Shs233m)
March 14 – Kr3,532,201 (Shs1.3b)
April 5- Kr410,815 (Shs153m)
April 6 – Kr276,673 (Shs103m)
April 29 – Kr3,664,832 (Shs1.3b)
May 31 – Kr3,779,641 (Shs1.4b)
June 7 – kr648,846 (Shs242m)
July 22 – kr4,529,108 (Shs1.6b)
August 3 – Kr856,677 (Shs320m)
August 26 – Kr 299,644 (Shs112m)
Sept. 7 – Kr 4,495,692 (Shs1.67b)
Sept. 27 – Kr2,796,829 (Shs1.04b)
October 24 – Kr744,502 (Shs278m)
Nov. 2 – Kr4,229,280 (Shs1.57b)
Nov. 10 – kr749,908 (Shs279m)
For further information on SK Mbuga files; suggestions, more evidence, complaints etc, write to us on editorial@watchdoguganda.com
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