According to police officials, the administrator is being held to assist investigations into how the suspect managed to flee after being briefly in local custody.
The man at the center of the case, identified as Atem Aguek, allegedly killed a colleague at a local money transfer center on Saturday. He reportedly surrendered himself to the boma administrator but later vanished under unclear circumstances.
Police say the administrator admitted during a phone call that he had apprehended the suspect. He even went as far as identifying him as Atem Aguek, who confessed to killing a private soldier named Deng Madut Deng.
However, when police officers were dispatched to collect the suspect, they were shocked to learn that he had already escaped.
Thiik Agoth Giir, the Acting Director for Criminal Investigation in Gogrial East, confirmed the incident and explained the chain of events that led to the arrest of the administrator.
“The suspect surrendered himself at Machar-Awuny boma, and the administrator there informed me about his presence. I sent officers to bring him in, but surprisingly, we were later told that the administrator had allowed another person to escort the suspect to us without waiting for our arrival. That is why we became infuriated and decided to arrest the boma administrator,” Agoth said.
Agoth further explained that the original incident occurred at the money transfer center, where security officers had been deployed. A dispute broke out, escalating into a violent confrontation in which the suspect, Atem Aguek, shot and killed his colleague, Deng Madut Deng.
The police chief emphasized that the administrator is being detained not as a primary suspect in the killing but to shed light on the disappearance. Authorities believe his role in handling the suspect after the surrender was careless and directly contributed to the escape.
“We are holding him so that we can establish how the killer disappeared, as investigations should have taken place immediately after the surrender. The escape complicates matters, but we are determined to track him down,” Agoth added.
The murder suspect remains at large, and police have launched a manhunt to ensure he is brought to justice.
