Kampala — THE prosecution in the trial of tycoon Kato Kajubi has presented to court a print-out showing telephone calls between the accused and the witchdoctor, Umar Kateregga.

Kajubi was charged with the murder of a 12-year-old boy, Joseph Kasirye, in Masaka last year for ritual purposes. Rashid Nyanzi, the district Police crimes officer, said he had obtained an order from magistrate Nanteza Kikomeko to obtain printouts from MTN on the phone calls allegedly made between Kajubi and Kateregga.

Nyanzi said he was instructed by his superviser, Christopher Rugumayo, to process the printouts of the two simcards got from Kateregga's phone.

Justice Moses Mukiibi took note of the court order and accepted the printouts as exhibits. The judge had earlier shelved the evidence by Samuel Rugesera, 42, a security officer with MTN, saying he would testify after the firm's engineers.

"We have authorities on the procedure of dealing with such evidence. In the case of the computer, the witness is the computer. The machine observes and records the facts," Mukiibi explained.

"It is necessary to call the person who controlled the operation of the telephone system to prove that the machines were working properly. It is also necessary to call a person who can confirm the accuracy of the information to prove that there was no possibility of improper use of the computer," Mukiibi ruled.

"It is again necessary to call the person, who made the printout. Then the information produced by the computer in the form of document may then be considered under the law."

The prosecution also asked to present the mobile phone used by Kateregga as evidence, but the Principal State Attorney, Stephen Wagona, said he needed to recall Rugumayo, to establish the source of the mobile phone allegedly got from Kateregga. The prosecution had wanted to use the phone as an exhibit, but the trial judge refused, saying the phone had not been produced in the court for identification.

He added that the court had not been informed that the Police had the phone, which would be used as an exhibit. Nyanzi had told the court that he obtained the mobile phone from Kateregga. But while giving evidence, he had said he had got it from Rugumayo, who headed the investigations in the case.