A Kenyan engineer was shot dead and his vehicle torched in a deadly morning ambush along the volatile Morobo–Kaya road, in what South Sudanese authorities have described as a coordinated attack by armed rebels. The shocking incident has sparked international concern and raised alarm over the escalating insecurity along key transport routes in Central Equatoria.
According to Morobo County Commissioner Charles Data Bullen, the slain engineer, identified as James Kariuki, was traveling with his assistant, Richard Matiangi, when their vehicle was ambushed by armed men near Bazi, approximately three miles from Morobo town. The attackers opened fire, killing Kariuki on the spot before setting the vehicle ablaze. Kariuki had reportedly just returned from a cross-border trip to Uganda where he had gone to purchase construction materials for a local church-led development project.
The two men, both working under Holy Trinity Church, were engaged in a community development initiative to build a primary school and renovate staff quarters for local parish workers. The mission, funded through church and humanitarian partners, had made Kariuki and his assistant familiar faces in the area—making the violent ambush all the more devastating to local residents.
Government forces responded swiftly to the attack, engaging the assailants and killing one of the attackers, whom the authorities identified as a known fighter with the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO). However, Matiangi and the vehicle’s driver remain missing, with fears growing that they may have been abducted or killed.
“This was a targeted and cowardly attack,” Commissioner Bullen said. “The perpetrators want to derail peace and community development. But we will not relent.” He added that security forces have intensified patrols along the Yei–Morobo–Kaya highway, a route increasingly seen as a rebel flashpoint.
Pattern of Violence in Morobo County
The murder of the Kenyan engineer marks the third deadly road ambush in Morobo County this month alone. At least two South Sudanese nationals have also been killed in similar attacks in recent weeks, as insecurity worsens in parts of Central Equatoria where the SPLA-IO and other armed groups operate despite the Revitalized Peace Agreement.
Earlier in July, gunmen attacked a motorbike convoy in Gulumbi, killing one and injuring another. In Panyume Payam, an attack displaced over 100 residents, prompting the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to issue a strong statement urging calm and demanding full access for humanitarian workers.
According to local sources and aid workers, armed groups in Morobo County often exploit weak government presence, using rural roads as ambush zones to target vehicles and instill fear. Civilians, aid workers, religious leaders, and now even foreign nationals are being caught in the crosshairs.
Kenyan Victim Leaves a Legacy of Service
James Kariuki was known for his dedication to improving education infrastructure and was contracted through a cross-border partnership between Kenyan engineers and South Sudanese church missions. “He came to build schools, not to die in a foreign land,” said Rev. Isaac Batali, the chairperson of Holy Trinity Church. “His killers didn’t just murder a man—they set fire to hope.”
Kariuki’s family, who reside in Nairobi, have called on both the Kenyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the South Sudanese government to bring his body home and to ensure the safe return of the missing colleague.
The Kenyan embassy in Juba has demanded a full investigation, while humanitarian organizations working in the Equatoria region have paused field missions pending a reassessment of security. “When humanitarian corridors become ambush zones, everyone loses—especially children, mothers, and displaced families,” said a representative of a leading NGO active in the region.
UNMISS has warned that these attacks not only undermine peace but also threaten to derail fragile humanitarian programs already suffering from logistical bottlenecks, funding shortfalls, and high staff turnover due to security concerns.
SPLA-IO and other armed groups have been accused of recent ambushes and civilian attacks across Central Equatoria, in violation of the 2018 peace deal.
The SSPDF (South Sudan People’s Defence Forces) have launched joint operations aimed at neutralizing ambush threats along key roads.
Regional leaders and civil society groups have renewed calls for the full demilitarization of civilian zones, along with local peace dialogues.
