By Yiep Joseph
The second accused in the Nasir attack trial, which also involved suspended First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar, on Wednesday petitioned the Special Court to order his release and the return of property allegedly seized during his arrest, arguing that his detention was unlawful.
Appearing before the court during the 86th hearing session, Mam Pal Dhuor asked the bench to direct the return of cash, vehicles, and other valuables that he said were confiscated by security personnel when he was arrested.
The accused told the court that the seizure of his property was unlawful and listed several items he claimed were taken from him, including his passport; an HP laptop; three watches, among them a gold watch; US$1,158; SSP 23,000; a gold necklace; two rings; and a bag.
While concluding his defence, Mam urged the court to order the return of his belongings and grant his release, maintaining that he had been detained without lawful justification.
“I pray to the court that my items taken by the National Security Service should be returned to me because I was unlawfully detained without justification and my family incurred loss during my one-year unlawful detainment,” Mam said.
He further submitted that his family had suffered losses as a result of his detention.
The accused also dismissed allegations presented by the prosecution and expert witnesses, describing them as false, unfounded, and unsupported by credible evidence.
“All the allegations levelled against me are not true; they are false, and nobody came from Nasir to testify that I took part in the Nasir incident. “Since 30 July 2022, I have never travelled to Nasir,” he said.
Mam argued that no witness from Nasir had appeared before the court to directly implicate him in the incident and maintained that he had not travelled to the area since July 2022.
Following the defence presentation, presiding judge Dr. James Alala adjourned the proceedings to Friday, 12 June 2025, when the court is expected to examine the second accused.
The court also directed the third accused, lawmaker Gatwech Lam Puoch, to be prepared to take the witness stand after the conclusion of the court’s examination of Mam on Friday.
Dr. Machar and his SPLA-IO co-accused face charges including murder, conspiracy, terrorism, treason, destruction of public property, and crimes against humanity.
Prosecutors allege that SPLA-IO forces, allied with the White Army, killed 257 soldiers, including commander David Majur Dak, and destroyed or seized military equipment valued at about $58 million.