Aerial view of Nimule border town | File photo

Authorities in Nimule say they are holding a Ugandan woman for entering South Sudan illegally.

Both Uganda and South Sudan closed their borders last month due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Only food trucks, each operated by a driver and a turn boy, are allowed to enter and leave South Sudan.

However, the 25-year-old Ugandan national identified as Kathabe Maureen, used a ‘secret path’ to enter Nimule.

The Chief Inspector of Police in Nimule, Mbiko Barakat, says the young woman will undergo a mandatory quarantine before she faces the law.

“She will be quarantined for 14 days and if she proves to be coronavirus negative, we will open a case against her,” Barakat told Eye Radio on Wednesday.

He said they heanded over Maureen to the ministry of health officials on Thursday morning.

This is the second time the border authorities have detained individuals over illegal border crossing.

Last week, five truck drivers were arrested for reportedly smuggling people into the country illegally.

The passengers had disguised themselves as turn boys.