A 25-year-old man was shot dead by his cousin brother in Ngutube village, Ikotos County in Eastern Equatoria State, local authorities said.
The deceased, identified only as Lorieu, was shot by on Monday at 8 p.m. following a domestic quarrel.
Ingong Caeser, the executive director of Ikotos County, told radio Tamazuj on Tuesday that the suspect surrendered himself to the police after the incident. He said the reasons behind the chilling murder remain unclear but added police authorities are investigating the matter.
“Yes, it happened. There is a man called Lorieu who fought with his cousin who later shot him dead,” he stated. “They fought themselves and they are real relatives.”
Meanwhile, Major Arop Akom, the deputy inspector of police in the county, confirmed the incident, saying the suspect is currently in police custody awaiting trial.
He said a security team together with the local chief in the area have been sent to investigate the matter.
“The suspect reached us here at the police station at night together with his gun but we have sent an officer to investigate the matter,” he narrated. “The problem is that the people here did not give the full names of the deceased. They gave only one name but we have sent the chief to file for us full details of the incident.”
According to Maj. Akom, preliminary investigations indicate that the deceased hit the suspect on the head with an object prompting the latter to shoot him in retaliation.
For his part, Charles Okullu, a local civil society activist, condemned the murder and called for justice. He also challenged parties to the 2018 peace agreement to speed up the implementation of security arrangements, including the disarmament of illegal weapons from the public to avoid such incidents.
“It was very unfortunate that the information we learned took place in Ikotos,” he noted. “There are very many guns in the hands of civilians some of whom are in the hands of unauthorized and untrained persons.”