Bearly a week ago; a one Ada Mazurek has been sending emails to anyone he believes to be a tour operator in Uganda with claims that a lodge based in Queen Elizabeth national park well known as Baboon Lodge stole money that he had left in his locked room. Below are the details of the accusation:
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m writing to kindly inform you about a ROBBERY that happened at the Baboon Lodge next to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Hopefully, it will save some of your customers from becoming victims of theft and counterfeiting.
The incident happened last week during our safari trip with Dav Safari. On June 29th in the afternoon we checked in at the Baboon Lodge. We left our luggage at the bungalows, closed the doors with the key, and rushed out for an afternoon activity.
We were away for approximately 4 hours. During our absence, an equivalent of 2,500USD in cash were stollen from our rooms. We left the bungalows closed and found them closed. Somebody entered with the key. Soon after we discovered it, we reported it to the local police and informed the Manager Yodh Viral.
We have evidence and are 100% sure that the money were stolen from this hotel during our absence. Unfortunately, there’re no cameras at the property. The Manager, Yodh Viral was dismissive and arrogant, extremely defensive, he didn’t apologize for the incident. The police made a promise to start the investigation – although they keep asking us about money for the fuel and other expenses…
The most unbelievable part of this whole story
Not long time after that we realized that we were victims of even worse theft. All our US dollars were SWAPPED into COUNTERFEIT MONEY! This means we lost all together 4,000 USD in cash.
As we understand, we will never recover lost money, we would like to STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST accommodating your customers in this lodge. Most likely the staff was involved in the theft and counterfeiting – it’s not a safe place!
Additionally, this event proves that there’re counterfeit banknotes in Uganda. The use or attempted use of counterfeit currency is illegal, and even if done unconsciously, international travelers may get into serious trouble with the law.
I hope this email will save your future customers from becoming VICTIMS OF CRIME.
The incident can be confirmed by local guide Amos from Dav Safari.
Best regards,
Ada Mazurek
Very upset tourist
Here is the response from Baboon Lodge