By Hou Akot Hou
Authorities in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State have reported that a 48-year-old woman, who had been on the run after allegedly trafficking two babies from Aweil Town and disappearing two weeks ago, has been apprehended in Wau Town, Western Bahr el Ghazal State.
Police spokesperson Madut Ngong Aleu narrated details of the incident on Wednesday in an interview.
Aleu explained that the case began on Monday when two women from Ayuang residential area in Aweil Town reported that a woman, posing under a false identity as a humanitarian worker, approached them claiming she was seeking babies lacking proper parental care to support.
Upon hearing this, the women agreed to her request. The suspect, identified as Awaa Karnaga, then instructed the mothers to go to the market to produce half-size photos of themselves as part of the supposed process.
While the women were away, she fled with the babies.
“What happened is that the woman, identified as Awaa Karnaga, is now detained in Wau after fleeing with two babies—one an 18-day-old boy and the other 20 days old. She told the mothers she worked as a humanitarian worker and was looking for children whose parents were unable to support them. When the mothers went to produce the photos, she disappeared,” said Madut.
“The women immediately reported the matter to the police. We conducted intelligence operations and informed our colleagues in Wau until she was caught yesterday. She will now be sent back to Aweil to complete investigations,” he added.
Aleu noted that this is not the first incident of its kind. He recalled a similar case in 2017 when a woman at Aweil Hospital lost her child after another caretaker, who had accompanied a sick person, escaped with the minor.
The child was later found in Aweil East following a widespread manhunt.
As South Sudan borders neighboring states such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and other East African countries, some citizens allege that traffickers often resort to occult practices or “Juju” firms that sell human organs, while others sell children to individuals unable to bear children in the region.