A former mayor of Juba City Council and influential politician in Central Equatoria State was released from detention on Friday in a case that has sparked public outcry.
Kalisto Ladu was roughed up and picked by National Security operatives from his home in Juba on 30 March while his wife and family members spectated. He has since been in detention, where he was held incommunicado.
Advocate Wani Santino Jada, the managing partner at M/S Pan African Law Chambers, LLP, and the lawyer representing Ladu, confirmed to Radio Tamazuj that his client had been released without providing further details.
“I am not going to discuss a lot, but I can confirm that he was released today at around 10 a.m. Until later, when the family gives consent, we shall speak to the press, but I can confirm that he has been released,” Santino said.
Last month, Vice President for Economic Cluster, Dr James Wani Igga, revealed for the first time that former mayor of Juba City Council Kalisto Ladu was facing criminal charges and would be arraigned in a competent court of law.
In June, Radio Tamazuj reported that the government had brought severe charges against Kalisto Ladu, including several capital offences that attract the death sentence.
The outspoken politician was a crusader against the endemic and often violent land grabbing in and around Juba.
Although any detainee must be brought before a judge within 24 hours according to the country’s constitution, this rarely happens.