By Otto Abut
The high court of juba has sentenced four people out of the six who were accused of shooting the bishop of Rumbek, Christian Carlassare in April last year.
While reading to the verdicts, Justice Alexander Sebur Subek read that, Fr. John Mathiang of Rumbek Diocese, Sebit Morris Ater and Laat Makur Agok are sentenced to seven years imprisonment without bail under article 334, 4 and 335,under Penal Cod Act 2008.
They are convicted for allegedly being the mastermind behind the shooting of Bishop of Rumbek, Christian Carlassare.
The judge propelled that, Morris Sebit Ater and Laat Makur who directly went with ammunitions to shoot the bishop in his house will serve the prison for four years under article 72 section 208 of the penal code 2008.
While Samuel Makir is sentences to 5 years for keeping two guns that were used for the attempt assassination and providing the assassin with Itel phone for communication.
Malith Jok Thiang, defense lawyer, disagreed with the lawyer’s findings on evidence, claiming that, the judge dwelled much on the evidence of the confession of the fifth accused Laat Makur who was not co-examined by the defense lawyers for validity.
“Normally the confession of the accused are used as a weaker evidence in a sense that they are not tested, the defense team (lawyers) were not allowed to test the validity of the fifth accused statements as evidence”, Malith complained.
On 2nd of March 2022, Court set free 20-year-old Mangok Chol and 31year-old Gabriel Deng Dut, under section 226 criminal procedures for lack of evidence, out of the six accused suspects in the shooting of Rumbek Bishop in April last year
The defense team reiterated that it will appeal after 15 days as stipulated by law.
The verdict was presided over by Justice Alexander Sebur Subek on Monday in Juba.