By Theophilous Ochang

A 27-year-old National Security Service officer was shot dead by unknown gunmen along the Torit- Kapoeta highway on Sunday, local authorities said.

Speaking to The City Review on Monday, Eastern Equatoria State police spokesperson, Major General, Justine Cleupus Takuru said the incident happened on Sunday evening between Lobira of Ikotos County and Tuhubak of Torit County.

According to the spokesperson, the officer, identified as Nue Louis Saturlino, was shot together with another person, a 42-year-old Sudanese engineer, Mohamed Ismail Mohamed, while accessing the Juba-Nadapal highway.  

He said the engineers, alongside the NSS officer, were in a pickup land cruiser carrying ten people and were on a mission to assess the size of the road between the two areas of Tuhubak and Lobira of Ikotos County.

“I received the report yesterday evening, at around 8pm in the office from an engineer, Norman Charles, who said that they were travelling from Torit to check the highway in Tuhubak because they want to demarcate the highway,” he said.

“On their way back, between Lobira and Tuhubak along the highway, the criminals fired at them, injuring the engineer and hitting the NSS officer on the head. We have dispatched forces to the area this morning, and they have not come back yet.”

Maj. Gen. Takuru stated that the Sudanese engineer who survived the shooting is undergoing treatment at Torit civil hospital and is improving.

The construction of Juba-Nadapal Highway was recently started after the work was stopped in 2020.