Ugandan police arrest athlete who disappeared in Japan

Ugandan police reported this Wednesday Arrested for interrogation of a weightlifter who disappeared in Japan After failing to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.

Julius Ciketoliko, 20, has disappeared from the Olympic Training Center After learning he didn’t get a place to compete in the Games, in a story he roamed the world while Japanese authorities tried to locate him.

He was eventually found and returned to Uganda, where government officials indicated that he would receive psychological support.

But they said that instead he was taken to the police His family members who demanded his release in court.

“It is heartbreaking to see my son sharing a cell with criminals while he is innocent,” he told the newspaper. France Press agency This Wednesday, the mother of the athlete, Juliette Naluda.

“the The police violated his rights by detaining him indefinitely. I call on the government and the athletes to ensure their release. He is an innocent young man. He didn’t hurt anyone. He asked: Why is he treated as a criminal?

A Ugandan Criminal Investigation Department spokesperson said that Siketoliko remained in detention for questioning about the alleged “fraud”.

“We have been informed that Cikitoliko did not qualify to be on the team in the first place. How did he get there? Who could have been behind his play? That’s what the police are trying to determine,” the spokesman said. Charles Twain to AFP.

Salim Musuk Senkongo, president of the Uganda Weightlifting Federation, announced in mid-July that the athlete trained “hard” for what could be his first Olympic weightlifting competition.

In a note found in his hotel room The athlete said he wanted to stay in Japan to work He asked to send his possessions to his family in Uganda

Sikitoliko has recently won a bronze medal in the African Championships.

ZZM