At least one soldier was killed Saturday in Malakal, Upper Nile in a shooting instigated by unpaid soldiers, according to the deputy governor.

Awiir Dau Agany told Radio Tamazuj Sunday that soldiers under command of Major General Johnson Olony started shooting over non-payment in the military barracks south of Malakal.

“The shooting started when some drunken soldiers were informed that their names were missing in a payroll. So they started shooting and deceiving other colleagues that the enemy is coming,” he said.

He said one soldier was killed in the confusion.

Dau said local citizens fled the town as a result of the heavy shootout, but they returned after authorities contained the chaos.

He further said investigation is ongoing in order to identify the problem and arrest undisciplined soldiers behind the incident.

Dau said the security is calm, while urging local residents to focus on development rather than listening to rumor mongers.

Olony’s SSDM/A militia is fighting alongside the Juba government after accepting an amnesty offer by South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir in 2013. The deputy governor claimed that the SSDM/A has been integrated into SPLA-Juba army.

File photo: Gen. Johnson Olony arrives in Juba, 13 June 2013 (Sudan Tribune)

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