The Moses Matovu attack in Kampala has left Uganda mourning one of the most important musicians in the country’s modern history, with police opening a suspected murder investigation into the death of the longtime Afrigo Band leader.
Matovu, 77, died on Thursday, September 24, 2026, after an early-morning incident in Kibuli, Makindye Division. Police said he was taken to Kibuli Hospital following the confrontation but later died.
The circumstances surrounding his death are still being investigated, and police have cautioned that the information available so far is preliminary.
Matovu was not simply another veteran performer. For more than five decades, his voice, saxophone and leadership helped shape Afrigo Band into one of Uganda’s most enduring musical institutions.
What police say about the Moses Matovu attack
Initial reports about the Moses Matovu attack suggested that the musician had been targeted while travelling for early morning prayers.
Daily Monitor reported that friends said Matovu regularly attended prayers at Kibuli Mosque and that early information indicated he may have been attacked while on his way there.
Police later released a more detailed preliminary account.
According to Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson Rachael Kawala, investigators believe Matovu went to the residence of his girlfriend at about 5:30am. Police allege that as the pair prepared to leave, they encountered a man said to have previously been in a relationship with the woman.
Investigators say a physical confrontation followed.
Police have stressed that detectives are still verifying the different accounts and have not yet established the complete sequence of events.
That distinction is important because several versions of what happened circulated in the hours after Matovu’s death.
Woman assisting police as male suspect is pursued
Police said the woman who was with Matovu has been taken into custody and is assisting detectives with the investigation.
A male suspect has also been identified but was believed to have left the scene before police arrived. Authorities said efforts were underway to locate him.
Kawala said police were continuing to gather evidence and interview people who may help establish what happened.
The case has been treated as a suspected murder while investigators work to determine responsibility and motive.
No court has established criminal responsibility, and the allegations surrounding the people connected to the incident remain subject to the police investigation.
Conflicting early accounts remain under investigation
The hours following Matovu’s death brought confusion as relatives, friends, residents and investigators gave different accounts of his movements before the incident.
One early version suggested he had left for morning prayers. Another, now forming part of the police investigation, places him outside a residence in Kibuli shortly before the confrontation.
Police have therefore avoided presenting their preliminary findings as a final conclusion.
Kawala said investigators were still checking the various accounts and would provide further information as the inquiry progressed.
For now, what authorities have confirmed is that an incident occurred in the Kibuli area early Thursday morning, Matovu was taken to hospital, and he later died.
Moses Matovu attack shocks Uganda’s music community
News of Matovu’s death spread quickly across Uganda on Thursday, particularly among generations of listeners who grew up with Afrigo Band.
His death comes just a year after the group marked 50 years since its formation, a milestone few African bands have reached while remaining active and widely recognised.
Matovu had been at the centre of that remarkable journey almost from the beginning.
He was a singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, but the saxophone became one of the strongest symbols of his career. On stage, he had an unmistakable presence: often calm and understated, yet central to the familiar Afrigo sound.
For many Ugandans, his music became part of weddings, nightclubs, radio programmes, family celebrations and Kampala’s live entertainment culture.
From Kampala choir boy to professional musician
Matovu was born in Kampala on June 19, 1949.
His journey into music started early, including time singing in a church choir before he entered professional music during the 1960s.
He performed with the Thunderbirds Band before spending time with the Police Band and later the Cranes Band.
Those groups belonged to an era when live bands dominated Uganda’s entertainment scene. Musicians were expected to master instruments, perform long live sets and move comfortably between local rhythms, jazz, soul, Congolese music and other influences.
When the Cranes Band eventually broke apart, Matovu and fellow musicians began building something new.
Moses Matovu helped create Afrigo Band in 1975
Afrigo Band was formed in Kampala in 1975, with Matovu among its founding members.
What followed became one of Uganda’s longest-running musical stories.
The band survived dramatic changes in the country’s politics, nightlife, technology and music industry. Formats moved from vinyl and cassette tapes to CDs, downloads and streaming, while musical tastes shifted repeatedly.
Afrigo remained.
Matovu served for decades as one of its most recognisable leaders, as well as a saxophonist, vocalist and composer.
The band’s longevity was partly built around its ability to evolve without losing its identity. Younger performers could join the lineup, new audiences could discover the music, but the rich live instrumentation remained at the heart of an Afrigo performance.
A career that crossed generations
It is difficult to tell the story of Uganda’s live-band culture without discussing Moses Matovu.
His career stretched for nearly six decades, allowing him to perform for audiences whose parents — and in some cases grandparents — had also listened to Afrigo Band.
That longevity made him more than a musician associated with one period.
He became a bridge between different eras of Ugandan popular music.
As younger artists increasingly built careers around digital production and recorded backing tracks, Afrigo continued demonstrating the appeal of a full band playing together on stage.
Matovu’s saxophone was central to that sound.
He remained active well beyond the age when many performers step away from touring and live shows, appearing with Afrigo as the group celebrated its major anniversaries and continued performing to large audiences.
Afrigo Band became a Ugandan institution
Formed on August 31, 1975, Afrigo Band developed into one of Uganda’s best-known live acts.
Its appeal was never limited to a single generation or language.
Over the decades, the group blended Ugandan musical traditions with influences including rumba, jazz, soul and other African popular styles.
Afrigo’s songs became familiar across radio stations and social events, while the band developed a particularly strong reputation for live performances.
Matovu remained one of the personalities audiences most closely associated with the group.
Even as members changed over the decades, his presence provided continuity.
Police investigation now turns to unanswered questions
The Moses Matovu attack remains an active investigation, and several important questions are still unanswered.
Police are trying to establish exactly what caused the confrontation, who participated in it and the sequence of events that ultimately led to Matovu’s death.
Authorities are also pursuing the identified male suspect while speaking with the woman who was present and other potential witnesses.
Police have appealed for calm as detectives work through the evidence.
That is especially important given the conflicting information that emerged immediately after the news broke.
Until investigators complete their work, claims about motive or responsibility should be treated as allegations rather than established facts.
Uganda loses one of its great musical survivors
Whatever investigators ultimately establish about the final hours of his life, Matovu’s place in Ugandan music was built over decades.
He belonged to a generation that helped transform live-band music from Kampala nightlife into an important part of the country’s cultural history.
Through Afrigo Band, he managed something particularly difficult in popular music: remaining relevant while the world around him changed.
Different generations heard different Afrigo songs. They encountered the band in different venues and through different technologies. Yet Matovu remained one of its constants.
His death at 77 closes an extraordinary chapter for a musician whose career began in the 1960s and continued into an era of streaming platforms and social media.
For Afrigo Band, his family and Uganda’s wider music community, the immediate moment is one of loss.
For police, however, the work is only beginning as investigators try to establish exactly what happened in Kibuli on the morning of September 24 and bring clarity to the circumstances surrounding the death of one of Uganda’s most recognisable musicians.
