Death in Dubai: 3. The most powerful pimp

Summary

World of Secrets: Death in Dubai

Episode 3: The Most Powerful Pimp

Podcast: World of Secrets (BBC)
Date: September 29, 2025

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Overview

This gripping episode unpacks the tragic and mysterious death of Monica (aka Mona Kizz), a young Ugandan woman who fell from a Dubai high-rise. While online rumors swirl—branding her a #DubaiPortaPotty and fueling social media spectacle—the podcast peels back the layers of exploitation, organized trafficking, and powerful actors beneath the internet gossip. Through first-hand testimonies, covert investigations, and detailed reporting, the episode exposes a network luring vulnerable young women to Dubai under false promises, only to trap them in a cycle of prostitution, violence, and debt.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Monica’s Death and Immediate Aftermath

• Kira describes the shock and trauma of finding Monica’s body. She hesitates to approach out of fear and notes the chaos among other girls in the apartment.
  [01:58] Kira: “I went to the building, but I was scared of reaching where the body is... It was my first time to see a human body. The police were there... it was a big trauma for us.”
• Whispered rumors and accusations circulate immediately. Depression among the group is palpable, but close friends doubt Monica’s death was a suicide: [03:15] Mia: “The Mona I know... can never commit suicide. She can't. She used to love life. She had big dreams.”
• Monica had recently posted lively social content, giving glimpses of hope for her future days before her death.

2. Recruitment & False Promises: The “Bash” Connection

• Kira and Mia’s Origin Stories: Both moved from small Ugandan villages to Dubai on the promise of well-paying jobs, seduced by Umar Bashir, known as "Bash."
  • [07:47] Kira: “He started telling me, you are poor, you are broke, you are stressed, you can make money, go to Dubai. He was sending me videos of girls earning money.”
  • [08:08] Mia: "Baj told me... You don't have to do anything. Your beauty stands out for you. You don't have to do anything. You don't have to sleep with them."
• The grim reality was immediate upon arrival: cramped, dirty accommodation with dozens of girls, and the coercion into sex work.

3. Investigative Reporting: Undercover Operation with Bash

• The podcaster, Renatho Salina, attempts to make contact with Bash undercover, posing as a woman seeking Dubai work.
  • Bash swiftly requests photos and identity documents. When the undercover reporter says she lacks a national ID, Bash offers to procure one, showing access to Ugandan government identity databases. [13:35] Michael & Renatho: "Wow... He would have had to like, oh, my gosh. That's kind of scary."
    [13:49] Michael: "That's very scary."
  • This access suggests Bash is significantly connected or corrupt within official networks; he's a key trafficker managing recruitment, transportation, and document forgery.

4. The System in Dubai: Abi, the “Most Powerful Pimp”

• Abi (Charles Mwesigwa): Once in Dubai, girls are handed to “Abi,” a Ugandan expatriate controlling dozens through violence, psychological manipulation, and financial bondage.
  • [16:35] Mia: “In Dubai he’s known as Abi. He’s the most powerful pimp.”
• Exploitation mechanics:
  • Girls forced into debt for airfare, visas, clothes, and lodging.
  • Their legal status is manipulated to induce overstay, making them illegal and susceptible to arrest, further trapping them. [17:07] Mia: “You don’t even have a visa... when you're on overstay in Dubai, you don't get a job... So he traps you there.”
  • Abi controls every aspect — housing, appearance, routines, destinations. If the girls resist or fail, they're met with violence. [18:16] Mia: “If you go out and you don't come with money, he would slap you. He would tell you you're useless.” [20:15] Kira: “He makes sure he puts fear in you, inside your brain... He used to force girls to sleep with him. He told them, you give me, I reduce the money."
  • The “debt” is fabricated to keep them working endlessly.
• Monica, ever defiant, clashed frequently with Abi, pushing against the bounds of control.

5. Resistance, Retaliation, and Escalation

• Monica tried to extricate herself by seeking help from a wealthy client who paid her debt to Abi. But Abi kept the money, and Monica threatened police action.
  • [22:34] Mia: "The guy sent money to Abi's phone. Abi ate the money. She got so mad... Monica used to say that one day I will go to the police and they will fuck you up, Abby."
• This threat ends with her eviction—and presumably, increased hostility or risk.

6. Disturbing Aftermath and Partying Amidst Death

• After Monica's death, Abi throws a party, celebrating as if nothing happened—an episode that underscores his sense of impunity.
  • [24:17] Kira: “He was happy. How can you celebrate when someone has died? And on top of that, you're the one who introduced her to this country.”

7. Patterns and Precedent: The Death of Kayla

• The pattern of deaths among Ugandan women becomes clear as Kayla, another victim, is profiled:
  • Same modus operandi: recruited for work, ends up dead after an alleged fall.
  • [25:54] Kira: “She’s not the first girl. The first one was called Kayla.”
  • Kayla's family, and detailed autopsy, confirm she had not been drinking or using drugs—countering official explanations.
  • Both Monica and Kayla were managed by Abi and subjected to the same system.

8. Unmasking Abi: Real Identity Revealed

• Through database checks and social media sleuthing, the investigative team connects the dots: Abi is Charles Mwesigwa, a Ugandan with a UK connection (the phone number starts +44, matching the UK).
  • He is highly cautious, never revealing his face online, but eventually a photo is identified and confirmed by a family member. [32:12] Michael: “This is the guy. This man is a devil to me. He’s a devil.”
  • Abi has institutionalized this business of trafficking and exploitation—not a one-off, but a systematic criminal enterprise.

9. Closing and Accountability Efforts

• The podcast team reaches out for right of reply to Bash, Abi, and relevant authorities in Uganda and Dubai. None respond.
• A former "operation manager" for Abi, once tasked with logistics and persuading girls to comply, now agrees to talk, promising further revelations in the next episode.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "She was always determined... She doesn't give up easily."
  —Kira on Monica (02:45)
• “My Mona can never commit suicide for real... She had big dreams.”
  —Mia (03:15)
• “That's the moment I knew I was trapped. Like, what am I going to do now?”
  —Mia, realizing the extent of Abi’s control (17:07)
• “He makes sure he puts fear in you, inside your brain... You’re a slave.”
  —Kira on Abi’s methods (20:15)
• “The moment you leave my place without clearing me, you end up like Mona.”
  —Kira, chilling warning from Abi (23:48)
• “He was happy. How can you celebrate when someone has died?”
  —Kira, on Abi's post-Monica party (24:17)
• “This man is a devil to me. He’s a devil.”
  —Michael, identifying Abi (32:12)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:58–04:00 – Kira and Mia recount the shock of discovering Monica’s body
• 07:17–08:54 – Introduction and background on the trafficker Umar Bashir ("Bash")
• 09:58–13:51 – Undercover operation reveals Bash’s methods and access to government systems
• 16:00–20:37 – Abi’s (Charles Mwesigwa) trafficking operation and methods of control
• 22:12–24:05 – Monica’s attempted escape, Abi’s retaliation
• 24:17–25:32 – Abi throws a party after Monica’s death
• 25:54–28:45 – The story of Kayla, another victim with strikingly similar circumstances
• 31:10–32:30 – Investigators confirm Abi’s identity with family member Michael

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Summary

By threading together survivor accounts, investigative journalism, and covert operations, Episode 3 paints a harrowing portrait of Monica’s life and ultimate death—a tragedy entwined with organized trafficking, deceitful recruiters, and a violently coercive Dubai-based network. Monica’s fate is shown not as an isolated incident but part of a broader pattern, sustained and shielded by powerful, well-connected criminals like Bash and Abi.

The final act sets the stage for the next installment: a rare insider’s perspective from a former operation manager within Abi’s empire, promising to shine further light on this dark underworld.

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For support or more information on trafficking and exploitation, visit the BBC or relevant humanitarian organizations.

Transcript

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[Renatho Salina]

Episodes of World of Secrets are released weekly wherever you get your BBC podcasts. But if you're in the uk, you can listen to the full season right now. First on BBC sounds a heads up that this episode has some strong language and discusses abuse. There's pounding at Kira's door, voices shouting her name. She's thinking, what on earth is going on? The other girls are yelling that Monica has died. Her body's been found on the ground outside a high rise. Kira runs there as fast as she can.

[Kira]

I went to the building, but I was scared of reaching where the body is. I stayed behind because I was scared. It was my first time to see a human body. The police were there trying to cover the body, everything. But it was a big trauma for us.

[Renatho Salina]

Almost immediately, Kira starts hearing whispers about what's happened to her friend.

[Kira]

It was just like too much. Everyone was talking, saying these different stories.

[Renatho Salina]

Monica was depressed. They all were. How could they not be?

[Kira]

You know, sometimes you go through things in life and you think death is the only solution, the solution to everything.

[Renatho Salina]

But she doesn't think Monica would take her own life.

[Kira]

She was always determined. When she wants something, she'll go for it. She'll always get it. She doesn't give up easily. She's a person who never gives up on something. She always keep on trying, trying so hard.

[Renatho Salina]

Back in the apartment, it's chaos as the news spreads. Everyone's shouting. They're all in shock. There are lots of girls There. Mia's one of them and she can't believe what she's hearing.

[Mia]

They say Mona has committed suicide. But the Mona I know, my Mona can never commit suicide for real. She can't. The woman in the video stands there for a moment. Yes, maybe she was in a bad situation. She was broke, but she used to love life. She had big dreams. Monica was like, you have to take care of yourself. So how can someone like that commit suicide?

[Renatho Salina]

Earlier that week, Monica had posted a self tape video. She's in a peach cutout dress, wearing a dramatic black bob and black eyeliner. She's looking straight at the camera, posing, blowing a kiss. At one point, her friends hope that things are finally looking up for her. She's about to be free. But four days later, she's dead. This is World of Secrets Season 9 Death in Dubai from the BBC World Service, I'm Renatho Salina. Episode 3 the Most Powerful Pimp Monica's family, back on the farm in Uganda, didn't really know much about her life in Dubai. At first glance, looking at her social, it looked incredible. You look like fine wine. Monica in glamorous hotels, posing in bikinis. The shining Dubai skyline behind her. Hello. But looking closely, you could see scratches and bruises on her skin. Perhaps Monika was trying to protect her family by not telling them everything. But Kira and Mia say they know what happened to Monica in Dubai. Because they say it happened to them.

[Kira]

That girl had a lot that killed her. It was a lot for one person. Everything was messed up on her side. All the time, Mess, mess.

[Renatho Salina]

Like Monica, Kira left her small village in Uganda, first for Kampala and then Dubai, hoping for a better life. She had been in Dubai for over a year before Monica arrived and when they met, they quickly became friends. She uses her nickname, Mona.

[Kira]

Yeah, we used to call her Mona. She found me there. She was a sweet soul, very innocent. She was so caring, very intelligent. Yeah, with big dreams. She was not happy because what she expected is not what she got. The day that man brought her to Dubai, that's when all her dreams got fucked up.

[Renatho Salina]

Kira pulls at her sleeves, her eyes darting around the room while Mia plays with her hair. Mia and Kira are not their real names and actors are voicing their words to protect them. Mia arrived in Dubai from Uganda before Kira and remembers when Monica turned up.

[Mia]

The moment Mona saw me, we connected. She was such a sweet girl. She used to tell me, you're so beautiful to be staying in a dirty place like this.

[Renatho Salina]

That dirty place was a cramped apartment they shared with lots of other girls.

[Kira]

In Albarja there were like 50 girls. 50 girls living there. Girls are there, smoking, drinking, like naked. The house was dirty. Everything was so shocking. They tell you something, you find something else.

[Renatho Salina]

The man who Kira and Mia say tricked them into coming to Dubai is the same man that sent Monica. The so called friend who assured Rita that her sister would be safe. Kira saved his contact number and it's the same number Rita has for him. She also has photos of this guy and these match the Instagram account I find using his number. His name is Umar Bashir.

[Kira]

It was Bash Bashir. Umar Bashir. I got to know him through a friend. He started telling me, you are poor, you are broke, you are stressed, you can make money, go to Dubai. He was sending me videos of girls earning money.

[Mia]

Baj told me, you, you know, you are a beautiful girl. Why are you here in Dubai? You can even be sitting on a beach and they splash you money. You don't have to do anything. Your beauty stands out for you. You don't have to do anything. You don't have to sleep with them. That's what he used to tell us. You know us girls, you're very stupid. I'm sorry to say that he made me believe him. And yet it was all wrong.

[Kira]

Bash transports girls from here, promising them the world, the best everything. And then they end up in Dubai. And after reaching Dubai, they found something else. They do prostitution. They go through a lot.

[Renatho Salina]

The girls I've spoken to say that for them, this nightmare started with Bash. If I'm going to try and understand what happened to Monica, I need to know more about him. And the only way to do that is to go undercover. I create an Instagram account using my holiday pictures with an AI face superimposed on top and asked my colleague, a Ugandan journalist, to provide the voice. Using this account, we send Bash a follow request and he accepts. He also adds us as a contact on WhatsApp so we can see his status updates. And in them he's advertising jobs in Dubai, cleaning and hospitality gigs. He's also saying, hit me up if you need a passport, national ID or birth certificate with a picture of stacks of bright blue Ugandan passports. Is he bluffing or is this for real?

[Mia]

Is it recording?

[Renatho Salina]

Yes. Our undercover reporter is about to call Bash, the man who Monica's families say arranged for her to go to Dubai. She's posing as someone interested in going there for work.

[Michael]

Ready?

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

We do this echo.

[Michael]

Yeah. Let's go.

[Renatho Salina]

You have dialed is out of service. Please Try again later. Frustrating. We try again.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

Maybe I called him on WhatsApp. Good evening, Mr. Bash.

[Michael]

Yes. How are you?

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

I am okay.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

My name is Kobe Nablime. Yes, Kobe, I have been trying to call you directly for some days.

[Michael]

Okay.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

I need a job abroad.

[Michael]

Okay.

[Renatho Salina]

Bash asks how she got his number. From a girl in Kampala, she tells him.

[Michael]

Have you traveled before?

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

No, I've never traveled out of Kampala, out of Uganda.

[Michael]

Without passport?

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

No, I don't have a passport.

[Renatho Salina]

Bash asks again who gave her his number. Maybe he's getting a bit suspicious. Our undercover reporter tries to throw him off. I can't remember her name, she tells him. Then he asks her to send him some photos.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

I give you my pictures. I don't know how you can help me.

[Renatho Salina]

The line goes dead. We try again.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

He has declined the call. He's texting.

[Renatho Salina]

He tells her to send him seven photos. She sends through the fake ones we made. Seemingly satisfied, he focuses again on her identity documents, asking for a national ID card. I don't have one, she replies. I'm going to get one for you, he writes, asking for info.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

Send me your names and date of birth.

[Renatho Salina]

He's saying he's going to check the Ugandan government identity system, the Naira Register. Only government officials should have access to this. The following day, our undercover reporter gets back on the phone with Bash.

[Undercover Reporter (Kobe Nablime)]

I had told you what I have done before. I have done cleaning. I have washed, like I know I have.

[Kira]

Cool.

[Michael]

We are going to go to that stage. I want first get you. I want to get you in the system.

[Renatho Salina]

I want to get you in the system, he says. Then he sends a screenshot of a woman's ID photo. It looks like it's from a database. It says application details and it has her signature. She has the same name we've given our undercover reporter. Is that you? He texts. We say no. Then he sends another photo, a different girl with the same name. I'm listening across on a phone line from the uk.

[Michael]

Wow.

[Renatho Salina]

And it actually does say, that's so interesting, the screenshot of the guy, because it really is from the database. Well, it's from something. Look at it. It says application details. He would have had to like, oh, my gosh. That's kind of scary.

[Michael]

That's very scary.

[Renatho Salina]

Wow. Bash appears to have access to official government identity systems, allowing him to pull personal data on millions of Ugandans. He's far better connected than we realized.

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[Renatho Salina]

It seems that Bash handles the Ugandan side, scouting girls and arranging the travel documents. But once they get to Dubai, they're handed over to another man. All I know so far is that this boss is also from Uganda. But Michael, Monica's relative, remembers him saying that he'd been in Dubai for 25 years and doesn't fear the authorities. Michael remembers him saying Dubai is mine. Kira and Mia also warn me that he's powerful. They fear him.

[Mia]

In Dubai he's known as Abi. He's not even one. He is the most powerful pimp in Dubai.

[Renatho Salina]

Mia says when she realized the situation she was in, she tried to leave. She told Abi that she wanted out.

[Mia]

I told him I wanted to go back to Uganda and she says he.

[Renatho Salina]

Told her, okay, pack your stuff, I'll book you A plane ticket. The next day, Mia's waiting with her bags ready to leave, when suddenly she says Abby turns around and tells her she's not going anywhere.

[Mia]

He insulted me so much. He said bash brings me stupid girls. I put money on you and now you just want to leave. You're stupid. That's the moment I knew I was trapped. Like, what am I going to do now? You don't even have a visa. Because the first thing he does, he puts you in overstay. When you're on overstay in Dubai, you don't get a job. You're scared to walk on the streets. If you're going to get out of the country, you have to pay an overstay fee, which is a huge amount of money. So he traps you there.

[Renatho Salina]

Remember, Michael says Monica told him she was in debt to this Dubai boss. Mia and Kira say Abby controlled every moment of their lives.

[Kira]

He's your landlord. He is your pimp. You wake, dress up and go and look for money. He drives you to bars with rich people and you have no choice. Nothing. The only choice you have is to go outside and sleep with the men. You're working for him. You're a slave.

[Mia]

That's the life. If you go out and you don't come with money, he would slap you. He would tell you you're useless. He will beat you up.

[Renatho Salina]

This is not the life in Dubai they were promised. They say this, this is a nightmare. They say Abi told them they had a huge debt to pay money for.

[Mia]

Air tickets for your visa, for where you're sleeping.

[Renatho Salina]

Food, pimping and prostitution are illegal in Dubai, but it's still pretty widespread. Most African sex workers in Dubai stay in the back streets of the old town. Deira. But Kira and Mia say Abi's model is different. During the day, his network sends girls to Dubai's most Instagrammable beaches. And then at night to high end clubs where influencers and even celebrities hang. The girls say Abby knows exactly what appeals to the Dubai clientele. What would make him the most money. It's Abby who decides how they have their nails done, their hairstyles and buys them a whole new wardrobe. But every penny he spends gets added to their debt.

[Mia]

He takes you to expensive places at first, so the debts pile up. That means you have to work hard, hard, hard, hard. Pleading for men to come sleep with you. Every coin you make, you take it to Abbey.

[Renatho Salina]

They're dressed to slay, seated at the best tables with expensive bottles sent over. But they're not There to enjoy themselves. Their one goal is to find men to sleep with to try to pay off Abe's money. Kira says if they don't, they're in trouble.

[Kira]

He makes sure he puts fear in you, inside your brain. He takes all the money you have to pay him fast and you can never clear him. He used to force girls to sleep with him. He told them, you give me, I reduce the money. He's just. Abi, the man who forces.

[Renatho Salina]

Mia says Monica would try to refuse Abby's instructions.

[Mia]

Abby used to fight with Monica almost every day. She would refuse. She would refuse because you can't force Monica to do something she doesn't want. Abby used to abuse Monica because she would go out, get a man they would just enjoy. She would forget about money. Then Abi would get so mad. You're there, you're drinking champagne. She would just order for more and just forget about the money. Yeah, that was Mona.

[Renatho Salina]

Monica was brave. The girls say she tried to stand up to this boss, the man they know as Abby. But there were times when it was too much.

[Mia]

Once I found her crying because the mom was sick and she didn't have money. She asked Abby to kindly send the money. She would compensate for it, but Abi refused. I found her in bed crying.

[Renatho Salina]

Mia and Kira did eventually manage to get away. For their safety, I can't go into details of how they did or when. Just that they're out. Four months after arriving in Dubai, Mia says Monica came to her with good news. Remember the phone call to Michael where he says she was hopeful, excited that a wealthy client, the Mzungu, was going to bail her out? Mia says Monica told her all about that too.

[Mia]

Monica got this guy. She explained the guy the story, how she doesn't want to be in that life anymore.

[Renatho Salina]

And Mia says that guy did come through with the money. Money to pay off her debt and renew her visa. Mia says he sent it to Abby. That was the only way it could happen because the girls didn't have their own bank accounts.

[Mia]

The guy sent money to Abi's phone. Abi ate the money. She got so mad. She had this something in mind to go to the police and report Abi. Monica used to say that one day I will go to the police and they will fuck you up, Abby.

[Renatho Salina]

Mia says that's when Abe told Monica, get out of my house. She says Monica didn't have the means to go far. She managed to get a shared room in an apartment about 10 minutes away from Alfaha Tower. She thinks it was Run by a Nigerian guy.

[Mia]

She got some kind of job. She was very excited. She thought she was going to get free, she was going to get her life back because that was a real job, not sleeping with men.

[Renatho Salina]

Kira and Mia say Abi was furious, claiming she still owed him money.

[Mia]

Abby was like you girls. You think whatever I do for you is easy. That's how the nightmare started.

[Renatho Salina]

Kira remembers Abby saying that Monica's boldness was starting to rub off on the other girls.

[Kira]

Abby told me something that is stuck in my head. The moment you leave my place without clearing me, you end up like Mona.

[Renatho Salina]

The evening after Monica's body was found, the girls say Abi threw a party. Food is made, bottles are popped, everyone's drinking.

[Kira]

He was happy. How can you celebrate when someone has died? And on top of that, you're the one who introduced her to this country. Which kind of human. Imagine you're the one that brought this girl here in Dubai, just making parties, celebrating.

[Renatho Salina]

Abby, the girls say, was acting like nothing had happened. Business as usual. But everyone else was really shaken. Monica's new landlord found the girls. He had something important to tell them.

[Mia]

He came crying, scared. He said they were in a vibe. Then after that, they all went to sleep.

[Renatho Salina]

He was with Monica at her new apartment. They'd been hanging out and drinking. And then after he'd gone to bed in the early hours of the morning, he was woken by the sound of raised voices.

[Mia]

They had Monica fighting someone at the balcony, but they don't know who that person was.

[Renatho Salina]

Mia and Kira aren't in contact with the landlord anymore, but I'm going to see if I can find him. The girls remember Michael turning up at the apartment to confront Abby and hearing him demanding to know what had happened to Monica. And Abby's reply.

[Kira]

He was like, she's not so special from others. She's not the first one to die and not going to be the last.

[Renatho Salina]

These chilling words. She remembers Abby saying that Monica wasn't the first to die and won't be the last. Kira says that was true.

[Kira]

She's not the first girl. The first one was called Kayla.

[Renatho Salina]

Kayla, another Ugandan girl. She died a year before Monica after falling from an apartment building close to where Monica's body was found. I'm in a shopping mall in downtown Kampala. It's heaving with people and there are shops selling everything from wigs to furniture. I weave between them, looking for a mobile phone store. I'm here to meet Kayla's brothers, Kamoga and Junior. It's 8pm and Junior's still working.

[Michael]

Hi.

[Renatho Salina]

How are you? So lovely to see you. Kamoga says his sister wanted to be an international model and hoped that would happen in Dubai. He said she was his best friend.

[Michael]

I miss my sister.

[Renatho Salina]

Yeah, you can imagine. Yeah, we can. We can take our time.

[Michael]

What I want. I want my sister.

[Renatho Salina]

5 months after she left for Dubai, they got a call from someone out of the blue telling them Kayla had jumped to her death from a tall building. And just like Monica's family, they're convinced that Kayla wouldn't have done that.

[Michael]

Someone killed her. Not Kayla. Killed. As if she didn't kill herself. No, it can't. Because I know my sister. She's dead. Her life.

[Renatho Salina]

Some of the girls who were there when she died told the brothers Kayla had been drinking and taking drugs. This, they were saying, was the cause of her death. The same thing Michael says the police told him about Monica. Unlike Monica's family, though, Kayla's brothers managed to get an autopsy report. Can you show me this one? Right. Wow. So this is a forensic medical report on the body of Caleb Burunji, your sister.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Renatho Salina]

And. Right. I see what you're saying, because. Because he says, I have taken a blood sample and sent it to be analyzed for detecting alcohol and drugs.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Renatho Salina]

But they say laboratory testing confirmed that the deceased was not under the influence of alcohol or narcotic substances at this time.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Renatho Salina]

I've spoken to some people who knew Kayla during her time in death. Buy. They told me Kayla was living in an apartment managed by Abby. Kayla, they said, had to pay him rent and bring him money from sleeping with clients. Kayla's brothers didn't know any of this. After she died, they got sent a number. This is for Kayla's landlord in Dubai. They're told and they share it with me. It's saved as Abby, but it's not a Dubai phone number. It starts with 44, the code for the UK. I run both the numbers I have for Abby through an online database. The one from Monica's sister Rita and the one from Kayla's brothers. They're definitely for the same person. The UK one is connected to a Facebook account. It reveals his full name. And it's not Abby. It's Charles Mwesigwa. I then find an Instagram account for him. It follows Mona. I send a voice note to my colleague. I'm going to call him Mark. He's ex military and has lots of contacts that will prove useful in the investigation. So it's. It's. It's frustrating. We have a Name Charles Mwasigwa Abby. But we don't have a picture. And he is very careful about not revealing his face. You know, I, I'm looking at a picture of him on WhatsApp, his WhatsApp profile picture on one of his two numbers that we have for him. And you have a row of six people on one side you have children, you can see their faces. And right in the middle you have who we presume to be is Charles Abby. And he is facing backwards, the only person facing the opposite direction. He's very careful not to show his face. But eventually we do manage to get a photo that might be Charles. Hell, that's Mark. He's been on this with me from the start.

[Brian Christopher / Ryan Seacrest]

I don't know, maybe not, maybe not, maybe it isn't.

[Michael]

But the back, back of his head.

[Brian Christopher / Ryan Seacrest]

Looks like that picture that you sent over at Charles.

[Michael]

He's the same Bill.

[Renatho Salina]

I feel like this has to be him. He's got a bald head. And I'm just looking back at that picture that I managed to get from the first number that we had linked to child. Well, the second one actually. And that one, it shows someone with a bald head turned around. I mean, yeah, it's him, it's him. I just realized it's him because the sister has commented too. Finally. I actually can't believe this right now. Finally, like, look at him. Like, no, I. This is just insane. I show it along with several other photos of other Ugandan men to Monica's relative Michael, and ask him, are any of them the guy he confronted in that apartment that day? He points to the picture for Abby.

[Michael]

This is the guy. This man is a devil to me. He's a devil.

[Renatho Salina]

I found the right man. He's certain even if I meet him.

[Michael]

In hell, I would recognize him. I remember his face. I remember everything. Even if I see his picture when I'm sleeping.

[Renatho Salina]

And now I think I found someone who might lead me to Abby.

[Michael]

Abby is doing this as a lifetime business. I think even when he's dragged out of Dubai, he would continue doing it elsewhere because he's addicted with his business.

[Renatho Salina]

This man knows him well, knows what he's doing because he was Abby's right hand man.

[Michael]

I started as a driver who could drive cows to different places, nightclubs. Later on I was the operation manager. I would face the challenges if the police came around, be the person to talk to these girls, to convince them to stay in the business. Yeah, that was my role.

[Renatho Salina]

And now I'm not sure why, but he's willing to talk. That's next time on World of Secrets. Later in the series, we're going to try to track down Charles Mwesigwa, known as Abby, and give him a chance to respond to these allegations. Rosemary Chisembo, executive director of Naira, said Omar Bashir is not on their staff list. She added that Naira employees sign a data protection and privacy agreement and are accountable for safeguarding personal data. Anyone who discloses personal data unlawfully will be punished. We also contacted Umar Bashir, inviting him to respond to the allegations made against him. He did not reply. We contacted Albasha Police Station requesting to see the case files for both Monica and Kayla. They did not reply. Then we invited the police to respond to allegations that Monica and Kayla's deaths had not been properly investigated. Again, they did not reply. This has been episode 3 of 6 of Death in Dubai, season 9 of World of Secrets. Thank you for listening. Please tell people about it and follow or subscribe so you don't miss an episode. Death in Dubai is produced by Ruth Evans, Lee Chung Bondo and me, Renaco Salina. The sound design and mix is by Andy Fell. The editor is Rebecca Henschke. Additional reporting by Shamim Nabakoza, voiceover by Shalifa Kadou and Savannah. It was a BBC Eye investigation produced in association with Thread Studios.

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