A Juba High Court judge has dismissed a case against two men accused of participating in the killing of nearly 20 people near Juba early this year.

David Moga Joseph, 35, and Anthony Dowa Kenyi, 33, were detained by the SSPDF in January in Kesira village following an attack by armed men in the area.

The army accused the two of being part of the group that killed 19 civilians between Gorom and Wonduruba, west of Juba.

According to the spokesperson of the SSPDF, the two were charged with murder and crimes against the state.

They were remanded at the Juba Central Prison in January waiting for a court hearing.

“The two were accused of section 48, section 67 and section 206 of the panel court respectively to have been the one carried the attack on Kasiro on 4 January 2019 in Gorom area,” says an advocate, whose organization provided legal aid to the two.

But on Tuesday, a mobile court under the high court threw out the charges.

Nichola Makuac, presiding judge, said the prosecutor failed to provide sufficient evidence binding the two young men to the attack and the murder of the civilians.

An advocate, whose organization provided legal aid to the two, told Eye Radio that Moga and Dowa were immediately released after the court verdict.

“After the prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove the two men were actually the ones who carried out the attack and they were part of the attack, they were freed,” Godfrey Victor, executive director for Justice and Human Rights Observatory group, told Eye Radio on Wednesday.

Victor said Moga and Dowa are civilians.