Ugandan court has ruled in favour of businessman Francis Xavier Ssempiira in a civil suit over a failed gold deal, ordering Aline Nabami Kaboy to refund money sent for the purchase and delivery of gold.In a judgment delivered by Hon. Justice Ocaya Thomas O.R on August 3, 2026, the court found that Kaboy received money from Ssempiira for the gold transaction but did not purchase or deliver the gold. The case arose from an arrangement introduced in 2020 by a mutual acquaintance, Prudence Kabugho, after Ssempiira, a Ugandan resident in Ontario, Canada, said his business was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and he decided to start a luxury jewelry line using gold as one of the raw materials.Ssempiira told court that Kabugho connected him to Kaboy, who allegedly assured him that she had genuine gold dealers and would export the gold to Canada. He said he remitted money to Kaboy in instalments, electronically and in cash, for the purpose. According to the suit, no gold was ever delivered and no money was returned, prompting him to seek recovery of CAD 91,161.31, general damages, interest and costs.Kaboy denied the claim, saying she had no experience in gold and was drawn into the venture by Ssempiira himself. She said the only money she received for the venture was UGX 5 million for expenses linked to travel to Tanzania to inspect gold, and that other sums were repayments of loans she had advanced to him.She further claimed the two later became partners in the gold trade and that she herself invested more than UGX 100 million in the business.The evidence before court show that on November 26, 2020, Ssempiira sent money through his brother, Joseph Kiwanuka, who handed UGX 5 million in cash to Kaboy at Nansana. Kaboy acknowledged receipt in writing and then travelled to Dar es Salaam, where she met Levrance Nkombo, took photographs and videos of gold, and attempted to ship it to Canada through DHL. That effort failed because the courier does not transport gold, after which Kaboy returned to Uganda and left the gold with Nkombo, according to her version of events.The court also heard that between November 29, 2020 and early 2021, Ssempiira made a series of remittances to Kaboy through WorldRemit, other money transfer services and wire transfers from Toronto Dominion Bank to Kaboy’s Stanbic Bank account. He testified that no gold reached him in Canada and that he was later contacted by a man identifying himself as Jonathan, who claimed to be a customs agent and demanded CAD 2,000.Ssempiira said checks with the Canada Border Services Agency showed that no package was held for him anywhere in Canada.Kaboy, in her defence, said she never held herself out as a gold dealer and had told Ssempiira she had no experience in gold. She claimed he asked her to travel to Tanzania to meet Nkombo, and later asked her for loans of USD 11,000 and USD 9,000, part of which she said she advanced and which he later repaid. She maintained that the money sent to her was not for gold purchases but for repayment, and denied knowing the alleged agents involved in the transaction.In his findings, the judge said the evidence “merely shows the Defendant as nothing but a contact” in relation to Ssempiira’s gold market undertakings, rather than a partner in a business venture. He added: “I find that no gold was bought for and delivered to the Plaintiff. I find further that no evidence at all was placed before this Court as to what became of the money the Defendant received.”The court declined to award the full CAD 91,161.31 claimed, saying the proven sums were UGX 5 million in cash and CAD 38,162.31 wired to Kaboy.“There is no evidence as to the disbursement of CAD 52,999 as I have already found above,” the judge said, noting that no receipt, invoice, assay certificate, export documentation, customs entry or accounting had been produced.The suit succeeded, and the court ordered Kaboy to pay UGX 5 million and CAD 38,162.31 (UGX110.7M) as money had and received, plus general damages of UGX 60 million and costs. The court also declared that she received money for the purchase and delivery of gold but neither purchased nor delivered the gold. Interest was awarded on the proven sums from the date the suit was filed until payment in full.The post Court Orders UGX175m Payout in Failed Uganda-Canada Gold Deal appeared first on Business Focus.