Koetsier’s disappearance remains one of the most mysterious disappearances in Uganda’s tourism industry history
By Hamza Kyeyune, Update: 26. Sept. 2025
KAMPALA, Uganda. Court in Kampala has withdrawn criminal charges against a Ugandan tour operator in a mysterious disappearance case of a Dutch medical intern, Sophia Koetsier. The chief State Attorney Joan Keko informed the court that she had received instructions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to discontinue the matter.
Sophia traveled to Uganda in 2015 for a two-month placement through a student exchange program. After completing the internship, she went on a tour to Murchison Falls National Park on October 28, 2015, with two friends.
They arrive at their accommodation at around six pm after a boat trip, she leaves her friends in the room to use a bathroom nearby, but doesn’t return.
Within 15 minutes of her disappearance, her friends raise an alarm and a search including park rangers, later joined by a Police helicopter and on the ground with sniffer dogs and a mixed group yield no results. The Dutch police team arrives in Uganda equipped with a drone but she is not found.
The team discovered a bottle she had been holding by the River bank, prompting fear that she might have walked to this point. They also found torn fabric and shoes at the scene. A park ranger testified that Sophia displayed unusual behavior during her visit, with her family acknowledging her struggles with bipolar disorder. While police closed the case suggesting a wild animal attack, this conclusion lacked evidence.
A case was opened against the unlicensed tour operator, but 10yeras later, the charges have been withdrawn, leaving the core mystery of Sophia’s disappearance unsolved.
This is the first recorded incidence of a visitor to the national park missing mysteriously, reported cases from Uganda Wildlife Authority in the past, involve those dying while hiking mountains.
Sophia’s disappearance remains one of the most mysteries in Uganda’s tourism industry
history.
