Extradited Ugandan Michael Katungi arraigned in US court, faces up to life in prison

Ugandan national Michael Katungi Mpweire faces up to life imprisonment after his extradition to the United States over an alleged scheme to supply military-grade weapons to a Mexican drug cartel.

Katungi, 45, appeared before a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, on October 8, 2026. He faces three conspiracy charges involving cocaine trafficking, firearms possession linked to drug trafficking, and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organisation.

US prosecutors said a conviction could attract a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment. A judge would determine the sentence after considering federal sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. 

His transfer followed months of contested extradition proceedings in Uganda. Katungi, a former Uganda People’s Defence Forces officer and former Patriotic League of Uganda official, first appeared before Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court on June 29, 2026. 

On August 28, 2026, Chief Magistrate Ritah Kidasa Neumbe rejected his objections and committed him to prison pending the Justice minister’s decision on his surrender.

Katungi had challenged the authority of officials handling the request, the procedure followed and the involvement of the Director of Public Prosecutions. He also claimed diplomatic immunity arising from his previous service in Nigeria.

The court rejected that claim, finding that neither Uganda nor the United States was the country to which he had been accredited. It stressed that the extradition proceedings would determine whether he should face trial abroad, rather than whether he was guilty.

Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Norbert Mao subsequently authorised his surrender in a letter dated September 1, 2026.

Mao directed the Uganda Prisons Service to hand Katungi to an authorised US representative for transfer. The authorisation limited his surrender to the offences covered by the extradition request. 

The US indictment alleges that, from at least September 2022, Katungi worked with Bulgarian Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, Kenyan Elisha Odhiambo Asumo and Tanzanian Subiro Osmund Mwapinga to supply weapons to Mexican drug cartels, particularly the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).

Prosecutors allege that the group believed the cartel would use the weapons to support large cocaine shipments into the United States.

Mirchev allegedly negotiated with people claiming to represent the cartel. Asumo, Katungi and Mwapinga allegedly obtained a Tanzanian end-user certificate authorising the importation of AK-47 rifles while concealing their intended destination.

An end-user certificate identifies the authorised recipient of controlled weapons. Prosecutors say the document supported a test shipment of 50 automatic rifles, magazines and ammunition from Bulgaria, intended for the CJNG.

The alleged scheme later expanded to a proposed weapons package worth about €53.7 million, or $58 million. It potentially included surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft drones and a ZU-23 anti-aircraft weapon system.

The United States designated the CJNG a foreign terrorist organisation on February 20, 2025.

Asumo pleaded guilty to cocaine conspiracy charges on July 23, 2026, while Mwapinga pleaded guilty on September 9, 2026. Their sentencing hearings are scheduled for November 4, 2026, and January 13, 2027, respectively.