UN judge deceived woman to work as slave while studying for law PhD, court told

A United Nations criminal tribunal judge deceived a young woman into coming to the UK to work as her slave while she studied for a PhD in law at the University of Oxford, a court has heard.

Lydia Mugambe is accused of taking “advantage of her status” over her alleged victim in the “most egregious way” by preventing the young Ugandan woman from holding down steady employment and forcing her to work as her maid and to provide childcare for free.

Prosecutors allege that from the outset, Mugambe, who is also a High Court judge in Uganda, had the intention of “obtaining someone to make her life easier and at the least possible cost to herself”.

The 49-year-old is also accused of attempting to “intimidate” her alleged victim into dropping the case – with Mugambe messaging an alleged fellow conspirator to tell the young woman’s pastor: “The police wants to take me to court in like two weeks, but if (she) tells them she has dropped interest they have no case to take to court.”

Oxford Crown Court heard Mugambe told police she had “diplomatic immunity”, through her work as a judge in Uganda and at the UN, when she was cautioned for witness intimidation, and that she could not be arrested.

Jurors were told the Metropolitan Police’s diplomatic team was contacted and confirmed Mugambe had no registered diplomatic immunity in the UK.

She is accused of engaging in “illegal folly” with Ugandan deputy high commissioner John Leonard Mugerwa in which they conspired to arrange for the young woman to come to the UK.

The pair are alleged to have participated in a “very dishonest” trade-off, in which Mr Mugerwa allegedly arranged for the Ugandan High Commission to sponsor the woman’s entrance into the UK in exchange for Mugambe attempting to speak to a judge who was in charge of legal action Mr Mugerwa was named in.

The court was told Mugambe could not sponsor the young woman’s entry to the UK as a student, but Mr Mugerwa could do it by indicating he was sponsoring her as a domestic worker in his personal household through his work at the High Commission.

Mugambe is accused of arranging the alleged victim’s travel “with a view to her being exploited”, and then required her to perform forced or compulsory labour, the charges against her state.

The defendant faces a fourth charge of conspiring to intimidate her alleged victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in order for her to withdraw her support for the prosecution or the charges against her to be dropped.

The charge states Mugambe contacted a pastor to assist in making contact with the young Ugandan woman; arranged for members of her family to be contacted so they could persuade her to drop the case; and arranged for an email to be sent directly to her.

According to her UN profile page, Mugambe was appointed to the body’s judicial roster in May 2023 – three months after police were called to her address in Oxfordshire.

Opening the case on Monday, Caroline Haughey KC said of Mugambe’s status as a judge: “You may think there can be little doubt as to her intelligence, and her ability to understand not only the basic rights of others but also the law concerning those rights.

“It is after all her role as a judge to ensure that the law is properly interpreted and applied.”

Ms Haughey KC continued: “It is the Crown’s case… that Ms Mugambe took advantage of her status over (her alleged victim) in a most egregious way.

“Ms Mugambe used her knowledge, and her power, to deceive (her alleged victim) into coming to the UK, taking advantage of her naivety to induce and deceive her into working for her for nothing.

“Ms Mugambe created a situation where (her alleged victim)… was deprived of the opportunity to support herself by preventing her from being able to hold down steady employment or to earn any money unless it was done at the whim or convenience of Ms Mugambe.

“This was her intention from the outset when arranging (the alleged victim) to come to the UK: obtaining someone to make her life easier and at the least possible cost to herself.”

Concluding her opening to the jury, the prosecutor added: “Lydia Mugambe has exploited and abused (her alleged victim), taking advantage of her lack of understanding of her rights to properly paid employment and deceiving her as to the purpose of her coming to the UK.

“On her arrival she was made to work for Lydia Mugambe from the very start, unremunerated and acting as maid and for child care to give Ms Mugambe back her life.

“Deprived of her freedom to choose her own work, to control her ID documents, she was beholden to Lydia Mugambe.

“If there was any doubt about this, it can be removed by considering that the minute (her alleged victim) challenged Ms Mugambe’s authority and tried to have control of her own ID documents, she was threatened with being returned to Uganda and informed she had to pay back a travel debt she never even knew she had.

“A young woman brought in for the convenience of Ms Mugambe’s life but mistreated – mistreated by Ms Mugambe, a woman of power and intelligence who had no qualms in lying to not only (her alleged victim) but to the police when they sought to ensure her safety and wellbeing.”

Mugambe denies all four charges against her.

The trial, expected to last three weeks, continues.