A prosecution witness, South African digital forensic expert Ratlhogo Peter Calvin Rafadi, previously presented evidence before the special court claiming that Puot Kang Chol had sent money to SPLM-IO commander Brig. Gen. Okdor Chuol Diet, which was allegedly used to procure arms and ammunition for the assault.
Appearing before the Special Court during the 79th session, Puot Kang rejected claims made by prosecution witnesses that he financed or facilitated the acquisition of weapons for armed groups involved in the deadly incident.
“On page 13 of my individual report, paragraphs 271–281, it is alleged that Brig. Gen. Timothy Bile Nyang contacted me on WhatsApp to inform me of his discussion with Brig. Gen. Okdor Chuol Diet about the purchase of ammunition. Your Lordships, I neither read his message nor did I respond to it. I only saw that message here in this honourable court for the first time,” said Chol.
Chol also denied any knowledge of a video presented by the expert showing a man identified as Ter Chuol Gatkuoth allegedly urging members of the Nuer community worldwide to send money through him exclusively.
“The Expert Witness claimed that the video was meant only for me, and not for the public (the Nuer Community worldwide), because it has no watermark,” he said.
“I would like to mention that I only saw that video for the first time when it was presented before this honourable court, and there was no mention of my name in Ter Chuol Gatkuoth’s statement.”
He claimed that the expert witness did not explain to the court how the video was allegedly obtained from his phone.
“The Expert Witness was also aware that I did not take that video myself, as I was not in Nasir at the time when that video was allegedly recorded.”
He said he was not aware of any alleged conversation between him and Dukan Jundi, in which the latter reportedly thanked him for the money and stated that the buffalo had been killed.
“First of all, Dukan Jundi is not a member of the armed youth. Second, Dukan Jundi was here in Juba at the time of the claimed message. Third, the Expert Witness did not tell us how much the money was, when and how that money reached Nasir, how that money was used, and how it was connected to the Nasir incident,” he said.
He also denied having any video of Tor Gile Thoan on his phone, which the police investigator, Maj. Gen. Basilio Wani presented in court.
He added that he saw the footage for the first time when it was played before the court.
“I do not know how and when it got onto my phone. And if it is about the alleged funding, Tor Gile Thoan did not mention my name in his speech, and the Investigator, Maj. Gen. Bazilio Wani has not produced any evidence before this honourable court to suggest a connection between the claim and the video.”
Presiding Judge James Alala Deng formally adjourned the hearing to Friday, May 22, 2026, for judges to continue examining the first accused, Puot Kang Chol.
Machar, a key opposition figure and former rebel leader, is among eight accused in the case, which has drawn significant political and public attention.
The accused include Riek Machar Teny, 73; Puot Kang Chuol, 40; Mam Pal Dhuor, 37; Gatwech Lam Puoch, 66; Lt. Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam, 53; Camilo Gatmai Kel, 47; Mading Yak Riek, 45; and Dominic Gatgok Riek, 27.
Prosecutors allege that forces of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO), allied with the White Army militia, killed 257 South Sudan People’s Defence Forces soldiers, including commander David Majur Dak, and destroyed or seized military equipment worth about $58 million in an attack on a garrison in Nasir in March 2025.
