In a statement issued Thursday, SPLA-IO spokesperson Col. Lam Paul Gabriel said Pvt. Werchum Thawan Oleyo Papa, who owns the ID, is a member of the SSPDF’s Agarab Infantry brigade based in Pibor of Greater Pibor Administrative Area.
“The SPLA-IO would like to inform the public that the owner of the SSPDF ID that was found at the site in Jebel Iraq is in fact alive in Juba,” Lam said.
The officer is currently undergoing treatment following serious head injuries sustained in 2020 during fighting in Lokwangole and was later evacuated to Juba for treatment, which allegedly stalled due to limited medical support.
Lam said that although a biometric registration exercise conducted by a team from Bilpam issued IDs to members of the Agarab brigade around 2024, Pvt. Werchum initially did not receive one. He was later assisted by Maj. Laju Nyelang Ngaruben, a brigade coordinator in Juba to obtain an ID to enable him to access military offices while seeking medical help.
However, the SPLA-IO claims the ID was later stolen after the soldier was attacked on his way home from Bilpam, preventing him from accessing the facility for further assistance.
“Upon seeing his ID on the media, Pvt. Leyo Papa reported to the police station in Jebel; however, they asked [him] to pay 30,000 SSP to document his case, which he didn’t have,” the statement said.
It added that he subsequently reported the matter to SSPDF ground forces and his brigade, and that military intelligence officers later visited his residence and instructed him to report to Bilpam to reclaim the ID.
The SPLA-IO statement comes a day after SSPDF spokesperson Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang said troops had recovered four AKM-47 rifles, two empty magazines, and a military ID from what he described as “fallen rebel fighters.” The army did not disclose the location or timing of the recovery.
The ID later surfaced in the wake of a deadly attack in Jebel Iraq, a gold mining area in Central Equatoria State earlier this week.
Lam used the statement to reject any link between the opposition group and the incident, reiterating SPLA-IO’s “innocence in the criminal acts committed in Jebel Iraq” and calling for independent investigations.
He further alleged that four members of a community from Bahr el Ghazal were killed in the area on March 27, a day before a larger attack on March 28, accusing the government of ignoring the earlier incident.
