UPDF soldiers attached to Bana Bana military detach in Madiopei sub-county in Lamwo district intercepted Lance Corporal, James Onyango on Saturday last week.
Uganda People’s
Defense Forces – UPDF has intercepted an armed South Sudanese soldiers roaming
inside Uganda’s territorial boundaries.
UPDF soldiers attached
to Bana Bana military detach in Madiopei sub-county in Lamwo district
intercepted Lance Corporal, James Onyango on Saturday last week.
The suspect,
who was found roaming with an AK47 assault rifle and 59 rounds of ammunition,
is attached to the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army-SPLA Lion battalion.
He reportedly
got lost from his unit.
James Nabinson Kidega, the Lamwo Resident District
Commissioner, confirmed the
incident.
Kidega says Onyango
who only speaks Arabic was first detained at Bana Bana barracks and later
transferred to Padibe Police Station.
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Kidega told URN that the soldier was spotted by civilians in
the jungles of Ngomoromo in Lokung sub-county before he crossed to the neighboring
Paloga sub-county heading to Agoro, which borders South Sudan.
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Onyango was reportedly trailed by UPDF for two days before he
was rounded up.
He becomes the second armed South Sudanese national to be
arrested in the country in less than four months.
In December 2018, an armed local singer, Grace Samuel Rom
alias Wajarasi was arrested by UPDF after straying into Uganda to carry out
illegal poaching.
He was nabbed
with two dead antelopes and was remanded to Gulu Central Prison.
According to the RDC, investigations are still ongoing to ascertain
what exactly caused Onyango to stray into Uganda’s territory armed.
Local
authorities note that the porous Uganda-South Sudan boarder has facilitated
cross boarder crime that requires extra security vigilance.
Ochola's journalism career begun from Radio King 90.2 FM in Gulu around 2009, and Radio Rupiny 95.7 Fm under Vision Group in 2012. He also reported for Mighty Fire 91.5 Fm, Kitgum in 2015 before joining Wizarts Foundation in 2017.
He has been reporting for Uganda Radio Network (URN) since 2017 before being posted as Bureau Chief Kitgum, and later Gulu between 2018 - 2021. Currently, he reports from Parliament.
