A Kenyan engineer operating in South Sudan escaped after over a week in captivity, according to reports from Juba.
According to Radio Tamazuj, the Kenyan, identified as Richard Matiangi, was abducted on Wednesday, July 30, by an armed group in Morobo County near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, some 200 kilometres from Juba.
Reports indicate he was ambushed while on the road travelling to Uganda, with armed assailants killing his colleague, another Kenyan engineer, James Kariuki, before setting the car on fire.
The perpetrators are said to have torched the car with the Kenyan inside.
When the attack occurred, the two engineers and four other South Sudanese youths were on their way to buy construction materials for Holy Trinity Church’s primary school and parish renovations.
According to reports, Matiangi was captured and forced to walk for more than seven hours through the bush to a camp. The abduction was confirmed by government authorities in the area.
After four days in captivity, Matiangi and the South Sudanese abductees were advised by one of the rebel fighters to escape.
The five are said to have taken the advice and walked miles to Morobo Town, where the engineer was involved in church activities.
“On August 3, one of the captors, reportedly a rebel fighter, advised them to escape. They managed to reach Morobo, where they were spotted near the church during prayers,” Isaac Batali, Chairperson of Holy Trinity Parish in Morobo, told the publication.
Following the ambush, at least one attacker was killed during a pursuit by the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF). Although the incident resulted in two deaths, perpetrators remain unidentified, though attackers were noted to be in SPLA–IO uniforms.
Matiangi was freed last week and is accompanying his deceased colleague to Kenya for burial.
Kariuki’s death is not the first for Kenyans in South Sudan. In April 2021, two Kenyan truck drivers were killed and two others went missing in an ambush along the Juba–Nimule highway.
Vehicles, including fuel tankers, were torched by armed attackers. The motive was unclear. Kenyan authorities and driver associations were notified.
South Sudan is increasingly becoming a popular destination for some Kenyans seeking job opportunities, with an estimated 50,000 Kenyans migrating northwards between January and June 2024.
