Ugandans abroad join in hunt for American soldier who abandoned his children with Ugandan woman

Ugandans living abroad have joined singer Bruno Kiggundu, better known as Bruno K, in efforts to trace an American man accused of abandoning two children he allegedly fathered with a Ugandan woman in Mbarara.

Bruno K launched the campaign after meeting the children's mother, Juliet Mbabazi, in Mbarara over the weekend. She identified the alleged father as Travis Preston and said he was a US serviceman.

Mbabazi told Bruno K that she has two children, aged three and seven, with Preston. She said she was married to him for two years before he left.

She claims Preston later returned to the United States and stopped providing for the family, leaving her to raise the children alone.

“Mr Travis, if you are there and you see this video, please come and take care of your children. They do not have what to eat and one is not even going to school,” Bruno K said.

The singer has since appealed to Ugandans in the United States to help trace Preston. He also wants the US Embassy in Kampala to intervene and establish whether the children have any claim to American citizenship or other assistance.

The campaign gained attention on social media over the weekend, with some Ugandans abroad offering to help.

Bruno K said some Ugandans serving in the US military had contacted him and were trying to establish information about the children's alleged father.

“I will try my best so that these kids get justice. Ugandans have vowed to help in this cause,” he said.

“There are some Ugandans serving in the US army who have reached out and said they are trying to get information about the father. We hope for the best results.”

Some social media users urged Mbabazi to approach the US Embassy in Kampala instead of relying solely on an online search.

One user suggested that she seek legal assistance and contact the embassy to establish the father's whereabouts and welfare.

Another urged her to approach Uganda's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for guidance on how to pursue the matter through official channels.

Others focused on the children's possible citizenship status.

Under US law, a child born outside the United States to an American citizen may acquire US citizenship at birth if statutory requirements are met. These include proof of the parental relationship and, depending on the circumstances, evidence that the American parent met the required period of physical presence in the United States before the child's birth. 

Bruno K has meanwhile turned his attention to the family's immediate needs.

He announced that Mbabazi would join one of his fundraising livestreams to allow Ugandans to contribute towards food, education and other needs as efforts to locate the alleged father continue.