Ex-minister Suvi Lindén provides reasons for trip to Uganda that lead to death of Finnish business man
Helsingin Sanomat has unearthed more information on the events surrounding the death of Finnish business man on a trip to Uganda. The man was on business in the country as a contrator for Patria, an arms and defence goods manufacturer from Finland. Accompanying him was Suvi Lindén, a former Minister.
The newspaper wrote a lengthy feature article on the death of the Finnish business man. In a great example of investigative journalism the reporters have unearthed detailed background on the event. Most notably a recording where Suvi Lindén, a former Minister in Finland, details the reasoning for the trip.
Another interesting artefact is a copy of the supposedly forged invitation letter that the arms dealer representing Patria, a manufacturer of armored personnel vehicles and other armaments, used to enter the country. The letter, supposedly signed by Ugandan security service ISO chief Frank Kaka Bagyenda is pictured below.
The letter shows that the business man was working together with the former Communications Minister Lindén. The other artifact, an audio tape, details what was the reason behind the travel. The recording was obtained by two Ugandan reporters who had presented themselves as members of the Kampala police force. In the recording Suvi Lindén describes the reasoning for the trip as follows:
We were here to open doors. This was our first visit, and we were supposed to map any business possibilities here [in Uganda]. My background is in telecommunications, and his [the business man] has a history in cyber security. He was here to represent a handful of Finnish companies who are… how would I say, working in the security industry.
According to details in the aboe letter the man would provide Mr. Bagyenda services related to cyber security. Including surveillance systems, media control and encryption gear, state controlled tracking equiment, anonymous networking and tracking software. A market for such wares exists in the country that was in civil war until 2006 and has since been in control of the suppressive regime of Yoweri Museveni.
Kampala police are now investigating the death of the mentioned (cyber) security business man as a murder. The local authorities have requested aid from the Finnish police to aid in the investigation. A second man, a Swedish citizen, was found dead a day after the Finn. A third body, of a US citizen, was also on the 13th of February: US tourist found dead in Uganda days after deaths of a Finn and a Swede
Lindén has also been a representative for the United Nations, and continued to use the envoy status unofficially. The report on the case includes details a link to Qatar, the Ugandan woman acting as a local contact, details on supposed drug abuse and a 0,5 Million euro embezzlement of a Polish military requipment corporation. The full report is available on the site HS.fi website and the mobile applications for Android, iOS and Windows.
It is worth noting that the article is in Finnish and behind a paywall. Source: Valepoliiseja, asekauppaa ja kuolema – HS tutki, miten suomalainen liikemies ja entinen ministeri Suvi Lindén päätyivät Ugandaan ja mitä sen jälkeen tapahtui