Justice Guel/Guvel's image - courtesy

A Mobile Court sitting at Juba Central Prison has sentenced a 15-year-old police officer to seven years in a juvenile reformatory after finding him guilty of murdering Garang Simon Dhieu in 2025.

The court found Paulino, whose other name Eye Radio has withheld because he is a minor, guilty of violating Section 206 of the South Sudan Penal Code Act, 2008.

Presiding Judge Peter Mazin ruled that the sentence would take effect from June 2025, taking into account the period the juvenile offender had already spent in detention.

In addition to the custodial sentence, the court ordered the convict and his family, together with the Ministry of Interior, to pay blood compensation (diya) of 31 cattle to the victim’s family in accordance with the customary practices of the Dinka community of Bahr el Ghazal.

The compensation will be recovered through civil proceedings.

The court also ordered the convict and his family, jointly with the Ministry of Interior, to pay 1.3 million South Sudanese Pounds and 3,640 US dollars to the victim’s family to cover expenses incurred in transporting Garang Simon Dhieu’s body from Juba to Aweil. The payment will also be recovered through civil proceedings.

Garang Simon Dhieu, who worked at a hotel in Juba, was fatally shot at a police checkpoint in June 2025 while returning home from work.

According to his colleagues, Garang left work at around 11 p.m. and was travelling by motorcycle when he approached the checkpoint, where he was allegedly shot by the juvenile police officer.

The incident sparked public concern and renewed calls for greater accountability among security personnel.

The case was concluded through the Mobile Court established at Juba Central Prison under a 30-day initiative launched in June 2026 by the Judiciary of South Sudan, with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The mobile court was established to fast-track juvenile and gender-based violence cases that had remained pending for years.

It is expected to hear 109 criminal cases dating from 2022 to 2025, with the aim of reducing prolonged pre-trial detention, easing congestion at Juba Central Prison, and improving access to justice for vulnerable groups.

Justice officials said the initiative also brings judicial services closer to detainees, allowing delayed cases to be resolved more quickly while protecting the rights of both victims and accused persons.

The programme forms part of wider efforts by the Judiciary of South Sudan and UNDP to strengthen the rule of law and improve the efficiency of the country’s criminal justice system.