The authorities in Warrap State on Friday said a woman was apprehended in Tonj South County on Thursday morning by security forces while smuggling ammunition to the restive Tonj East County.
Last week, armed youth from the Luachjang Section attacked the Jalwau Community, resulting in the loss of many lives and injuries on both sides, according to officials. Local sources also confirmed that there has been calm in Tonj South County since Governor Amb. Bol Wek Agoth temporarily relocated his office there.
John Autiak, the Tonj South commissioner, told Radio Tamazuj on Friday that the woman, only identified as Aguek, is being investigated for smuggling ammunition from Northern Bahr el Ghazal State to Warrap’s Tonj East County.
“She is called Aguek and confessed that someone received the bullets at the border in Northern Bahr el Ghazal and sent them to Wau in Western Bahr el Ghazal State, where she picked them. She was stopped at the checkpoint and asked what she had in the sack, and she said it was sorghum,” he explained. “The security personnel were suspicious because of the weight of the sack, and when they checked, they found 1,121 bullets in the sack with sorghum. We are investigating whether she has been doing it for a long time or if this was her first time.”
“The woman was not arrested in town but in a remote area towards Luacjang, where she would have moved through Tonj South County and disappeared with this ammunition,” Commissioner Autiak added.
He lauded the efforts of the governor and people of Tonj South in maintaining security, which he said has led to stability.
Asked about the progress of the disarmament exercise, the commissioner said the youth are cooperating and handing in illegal weapons to the authorities.
“The number of guns collected is not known because payam administrators kept them at police stations at the payam level and they have not yet reported to the county level,” he explained. “However, the youth in Tonj South respected the government this time, and we thank them for that.”
Meanwhile, Warrap State Information Minister Mamer Bath confirmed the woman’s arrest and commended the security forces for a job well done. He also said the disarmament exercise is progressing well.
“A woman was indeed caught smuggling ammunition, and she is now under arrest,” he said. “We spent seven days with the governor in areas without a communication network, talking to people to hand over illegal guns to the local authorities.”
Minister Bath added, “So, local chiefs are working on this, and if they [youth] resist, we will use force to disarm them.”