Testifying through a court interpreter, Mam Pal Dhuor, the second accused, told the special court that officers of the National Security Service (NSS) arrested him at Juba Airport on March 5, 2025, while he was boarding a flight to Uganda.
Mam was testifying during the 84th session of the court held at Freedom Hall on Friday.
He said that upon disembarking from the plane, NSS officers took him to an office at the airport, where his details were recorded, before transferring him to the National Security Service Operations Department in Riverside.
“The National Security officer on duty seized my personal belongings,” Mam told the court.
He alleged that officers confiscated several items, including his passport, an HP laptop, three watches — among them a gold watch — US$1,158, SSP 23,000, a gold necklace, two rings and a bag.
The 38-year-old businessman denied prosecution allegations and findings presented by a digital forensic expert that he transferred US$15,000 through Mohammed Sherif Ahmed in Dubai to support armed youth activities in Nasir.
He also disputed evidence relating to a payment of 55,050 Emirati dirhams, equivalent to US$15,000, allegedly received by Mohammed Sherif Ahmed on his behalf.
Mam, who operates a transport business, said he had a longstanding personal and business relationship with Mohammed Sherif Ahmed, an Indian businessman. He told the court he travelled to India on October 5, 2024, on a business trip to visit him.
He said he later travelled to Dubai with his Indian business partners, but Mohammed Sherif Ahmed arrived earlier because he did not have a United Arab Emirates (UAE) visa at the time.
“After I concluded my business trip to India, we agreed to go to Dubai together, but because I did not have a United Arab Emirates (UAE) visa, we agreed that he goes first to the UAE and process my visa,” Mam said. “While I was still on my way from India to the UAE, I requested my business team to send me US$15,000 to be sent to Dubai through Mohammed Sherif Ahmed.”
The second accused also denied allegations that money was sent to Nasir through M-Pesa to an individual identified as Gatwech Liem, as earlier alleged by the digital forensic expert.
The court adjourned the hearing to June 8, 2026, to continue the testimony of the second accused, Mam Pal Dhuor.
Mam is among eight defendants facing charges including treason, crimes against humanity, murder, terrorism and destruction of property in connection with the March 2025 attack on a South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) base in Nasir.
The other defendants include First Vice President Riek Machar, Puot Kang Chuol, Gatwech Lam Puoch, Lt. Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam, Camilo Gatmai Kel, Mading Yak Riek and Dominic Gatgok Riek.
Machar remains under house arrest, while the remaining accused are being held by the National Security Service.
Prosecutors allege that Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) forces, allied with the White Army militia, killed 257 SSPDF soldiers, including commander David Majur Dak, and destroyed or seized military equipment worth about US$58 million during the attack.
The defendants have denied the charges.
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