Authorities in Eastern Equatoria State’s Torit County are holding the chief of Iloli village for sheltering criminals suspected of shooting an old man in Oguruny village earlier in the week.
Gunmen attacked Oguruny village and shot and injured 83-year-old Paulino Odere who is convalescing at Torit State Hospital.
The Torit county Commissioner, Jacob Atari Albano, told Radio Tamazuj Thursday that Chief Ofere Sisto of Iloli Boma was arrested after the tracks of the suspected criminals were traced to his village. The chief denies that people from his village were involved in the shooting.
“When the chief of Oguruny reported the matter, I immediately started to organize a force. I went up to Oguruny to the place where the incident happened and ordered the soldiers together with the Monyiemiji (youth) and we followed the footmarks which entered Iloli village,” Commissioner Atari said. “We called the Monyiemiji of Iloli and we had a meeting with them. They were saying they did not know what happened but I immediately ordered for the arrest of the chief and we brought him up to Hiyala.”
He added: “When we came with the chief up to Hiyala, he confessed that he knew those people who came and shot a person in Oguruny and that they are from Obira. He said the two people, after they shot that person from Oguruny, went to Iloli and the following morning departed. So that is the situation on the ground.”
Commissioner Atari said the government is investigating the matter and plans to visit Obira village to meet Monyiemiji to corroborate the chief’s statement.
The chief of Oguruny village, Risio Otida Orasio, blamed the Iloli youth for the attack and asked his Monyiemiji to remain calm and allow the government to handle the matter peacefully.
“They shot an old man, Paulino Odere, who is now in Torit. They are Iloli youth, we followed the footmarks up to Iloli. They came and when they shot the man, they ran there (Iloli). These people were only two (attackers),” Chief Otida said.
For his part, the Iloli chief, Ofere Sisto, confirmed he had been arrested but maintains the youth from his village are innocent.
“I was brought over the issue that happened in Oguruny. That the footmarks of the perpetrators that shot the man in Oguruny entered my village. That is why I was brought in for investigation. The footmarks entered my village. These are the people of Obira who came, entered my village, stayed for a short time and they got up and went to Oguruny and shot someone there,” Chief Ofere explained.
Iloli and Oguruny villages have in the past fought severally and blame each other for fomenting attacks.