South Sudan’s National Security Service (NSS) said on Tuesday it had arrested three suspects accused of forging President Salva Kiir’s signature and interfering in an investigation into alleged financial crimes involving several detainees.
Speaking at a press briefing in Juba, David John Kumuri, spokesperson for the National Security Service (NSS), identified the suspects as lawmakers Kom Kom Geng and Ayii Ayii Akol, as well as Hon. Achan Agoth Akiec. He said parliament had lifted the immunity of the two lawmakers.
Kom Kom Geng chairs parliament’s security and public order committee, while Ayii Ayii Akol is the brother of Vice President Hussein Abdelbagi Akol.
Achan Agoth Akiec, a businesswoman based in Juba, previously served as a senior and special adviser in the Office of First Lady Mary Ayen Mayardit and is known for her close ties to senior officials.
Kumuri said the three suspects were arrested last week on charges including forgery, unlawful use of presidential authority, smuggling of documents and interfering with an ongoing investigation involving 16 detainees, including former vice president Benjamin Bol Mel, over alleged financial and related crimes.
“The three suspects were apprehended and charged with forgery of signatures, unlawful use of presidential symbols of authority, smuggling of documents and interfering with ongoing investigations,” Kumuri told reporters.
He said the NSS, acting as complainant, opened criminal case number 1891 on May 13 through the Northern Police Division and public prosecutors before forwarding the file to parliament to lift the lawmakers’ immunity.
“The suspects were arrested under sections 341, 62, 76, 75, 362, 361, 359, 357 and section 48 of the Penal Code Act 2008,” he said.
If convicted, the suspects face multi-year prison terms and fines under South Sudan’s Penal Code Act, 2008 for forgery, unlawful use of presidential authority and interference with investigations, offences treated as serious criminal violations.
Kumuri said the suspects were being held at the NSS detention facility known as the Blue House pending legal proceedings.
Asked how the suspects allegedly obtained or forged documents linked to the presidency, Kumuri said the NSS uncovered the case through “human intelligence and technical intelligence”.
“These criminals were apprehended when they were carrying these documents of the President of the Republic,” he said, describing the alleged acts as an encroachment on executive authority.
Kumuri declined to comment on whether former officials or financial institutions were implicated, saying he could not interfere with the work of the investigation committee.
The briefing renewed scrutiny of detentions carried out by South Sudan’s security agencies, which rights groups have repeatedly accused of holding suspects for prolonged periods without trial.
Journalists questioned why some detainees arrested months earlier had yet to appear in court, while the cases against the three suspects appeared to be progressing more quickly.
“The nature of the crimes is different,” Kumuri said.
Asked whether prolonged detention without court appearances amounted to wrongful detention, Kumuri defended the agency’s conduct and rejected accusations of violations.
“I want to make it clear. The state arrests, we don’t abduct,” he said.
South Sudan’s security services have faced criticism in recent years from activists, lawyers and international observers over arbitrary arrests and restrictions on civic and political freedoms.
The National Security Service Act grants the agency broad powers to arrest and detain individuals without warrants. Although South Sudanese law requires that a detainee be brought before a court within 24 hours of arrest, this provision is rarely respected by security forces.
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