By Hou Akot Hou
In Aweil West county of Northern Bahr El Ghazal state, authorities are holding a woman and her 9-year-old son over the death of a 20-year-old man.
The boy, named Wol Wan Akot, is accused of insulting his late step-brother, who allegedly stole some unnamed items. He later took his own life.
The deceased, Akot Wan Akot, is 20 years old.
Police investigator, Atak Wol Kiir believes the accused woman, Abuk Ngor Ungom and her son have conjured the issue with her son and insulted the stepson.
“We have opened the case against the woman as she seemed to have helped her 9-year-old boy who was fighting with his step-brother who happened to have fought the 20-year-old boy and insulted him as a thief. And the woman helped the small boy and angered the stepson till he took his life,” said Wol.
He said the court will decide how to settle the case, as the 20-year-old man has already died instantly.
Kiir appealed to the public to avoid preferential treatment of people in families through biased approaches, as this causes a breakdown in societal settings and creates conflicts.
Authorities in the area have reported three cases of suicide due to family disputes.