The Ugandan army said it caught Caesar Achellam, a major general in Kony’s outfit of about 200 fighters, in an ambush along the banks of the River Mbou in Central African Republic (CAR) on Saturday.
Achellam was armed with just an AK-47 rifle and eight rounds of ammunition, a spokesman for the Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF), said. He was being held with his wife, a young daughter and a helper.
The UPDF, which has a force hunting for Kony full-time in the jungles of CAR, backed by U.S. troops, said the capture of Achellam would encourage other fighters to abandon the LRA.
“The arrest of Major General Caesar Achellam is big progress because he is a big fish,” said UPDF spokesman Felix Kulaigye. “His capture is definitely going to cause an opinion shift within the LRA.”
Achellam, who was paraded before media, walked with a limp, which he attributed to an old wound. He was returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo when he walked into the soldiers’ ambush. UPDF said it had been on his trail for a month.
Analysts said Achellam was a close ally of Kony and had masterminded the group’s relocation from northern Uganda.
“From whichever angle you look at it, the loss of Achellam should be very troubling for Kony and a big boost for his manhunt,” said Angelo Izama, an analyst who has written extensively on the LRA.