By Yiep Joseph
The National Security Service (NSS) has confirmed the arrest of three senior officials, including two members of parliament and a former advisor to the First Lady, over allegations of forging presidential orders.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, NSS spokesperson David John Kumuri said the suspects were arrested and detained at the NSS detention facility.
He claimed that the suspects attempted to secure the release of officials detained over financial crimes.
However, the former vice president Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel and other detainees remain under financial crime investigations, according to the government.
“The suspects were apprehended and charged with forgery of signatures, unlawful use of presidential symbols of authority, smuggling of documents, and interfering with ongoing investigations involving 16 detained individuals accused of financial and other related crimes,” Kumuri said.
The NSS identified the suspects as lawmakers Kom Kom Geng and Ayii Ayii Akol, as well as Achan Agoth, a former advisor to the First Lady.
Kumuri said the suspects face charges under several provisions of the Penal Code Act 2008, including forgery, unlawful use of presidential authority, document smuggling, and interference with ongoing investigations.
“Prior to this arrest, the National Security Service, Internal Security Bureau, acting as complainant, initiated a criminal case. We have already opened a case, number 1891. The case number is 1891, on May 13, 2026, at Northern Police Division,” he said.
The arrests followed a recent parliamentary decision to lift the immunity of the two lawmakers after requests from the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and the Office of the President.
According to Kumuri, the NSS, acting as the complainant, opened Criminal Case No. 1891 on May 13 through the Northern Police Division in coordination with public prosecutors before forwarding the case file to parliament to facilitate the lifting of immunity.
Kumuri said the suspects are currently being held at the NSS detention facility, commonly known as the Blue House, pending legal proceedings.
He called on the government officials and the public to cease from forgery, citing that it is against the law.
“The National Security Service, Internal Security Bureau, reminds all the public, officials, foreign nationals, and private businesspeople operating in the Republic of South Sudan to refrain from acts that violate their official duties. Such conduct not only undermines the national laws of the Republic of South Sudan, but also constitutes a crime, offenses punishable under the law of the Republic of South Sudan,” he warned.
This case comes amid a broader pattern of recent parliamentary actions to strip lawmakers of immunity to allow criminal investigations to proceed.
Just days earlier, parliament lifted the immunity of the same two MPs, Kom Kom Geng and Ayii Ayii Akol, after they were linked to allegations of forging President Kiir’s signature and unlawfully using presidential symbols of authority.
The decision followed an extraordinary parliamentary sitting in which lawmakers reviewed requests from the justice ministry and the presidency.
The Speaker of Parliament presented documents related to Criminal Case No. 1891/2026, which was opened by prosecutors through the Northern Police Division, paving the way for the investigation and detention of the suspects.