A senior Ugandan judge and former United Nations official has been sentenced to six years and four months in a British prison after being found guilty of modern slavery offences.
Justice Lydia Mugambe, 50, who previously studied law at Oxford University, was convicted at Oxford Crown Court of forcing a young Ugandan woman to work as her maid and childminder without pay. The jury found her guilty of conspiring to breach UK immigration law, facilitating travel for exploitation, forced labour, and attempting to intimidate a witness.
The court heard how Mugambe abused her legal standing to bring the woman into the UK under false pretences and then subjected her to exploitative domestic servitude, barring her from pursuing employment or a normal life.
In a victim impact statement read during the trial, the woman said she lived in “almost constant fear” due to Mugambe’s influence and powerful reputation in Uganda.
Presiding judge, Mr Justice David Foxton, described the case as “deeply troubling”, noting Mugambe’s distinguished legal career but condemning her “illegal folly” and abuse of trust.
“She deliberately used her status to exploit and silence someone far more vulnerable,” said Foxton. “This sentence must reflect the gravity of such offences.”
