A senior judge who worked for the United Nations as well as Uganda’s High Court has been sentenced to six years and four months in prison after she was convicted of enslaving a young woman to work as a maid in the United Kingdom.
The Oxford Crown Court found that Lydia Mugambe had taken “advantage of her status” over the young Ugandan woman in the “most egregious way.”

Judge convicted under Modern Slavery Act

Prosecutors said that Mugambe tricked a young Ugandan woman to move to the UK in 2022 to work as a maid and provide childcare without pay. Mugambe was studying her PhD at the University of Oxford at the time.
Mugambe was also charged with conspiring with John Leonard Mugerwa, then Uganda’s deputy high commissioner in London, to get the victim into Britain by lying on her visa application.
The judge was found guilty in March on four counts: conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law, facilitating travel with a view to exploitation, forcing someone to work, and conspiracy to intimidate a witness after a trial.
Two of the charges came under Britain’s Modern Slavery Act.

What did the victim say about her treatment?

Judge David Foxton on Friday called it a “very sad case,” pointing out Mugambe’s legal accomplishments included working for the protection of human rights.
“You have shown absolutely no remorse for your conduct. Instead, you continue, wholly unjustifiably I am afraid, to depict yourself as the victim,” Foxton said.
The victim reported living in “almost constant fear,” according to a written statement that was read out in court.
Due to Mugambe’s powerful standing in Uganda, she said she “can’t go back” to her country and was afraid she may never see her mother again.