A toddler is nursing severe gunshot wounds at Kapchorwa Hospital after being shot by suspected Karamojong cattle raiders.
The victim has been identified as Vincent Cherop, a resident of Girigi village, Girigi sub-county in Kween district.
Francis Chelimo, the area LC 1 Chairperson told Uganda Radio Network that the suspected Karamojong cattle rustlers on Saturday morning at around 3am ambushed a kraal of Cherop’s father Denis Chepnoyen.
He explains that, the raiders while in the process of stealing cattle shot at the entrance of Chepnoyen’s house, and the bullet hit Cherop.
Chelimo said the gun shots alerted the people and security who intervened, and the raiders escaped with no animal.
Geoffrey Kiplangat, the Chairperson LC 3, expressed the concern about the matters of insecurity and has called for urgent attention from the security departments to take the matter with a serious concern.
“We’ve witnessed several attacks from the rustlers but the security take long to respond. We need a solution because we are not safe, ” stated Kiplangat.
Fredmark Chesang, the Police spokesperson, Sipi region confirmed the incident saying the toddler was injured by the bullet on the right arm, and is now getting treatment at Kapchorwa hospital, while security has also been deployed.
“Everything is currently under control, and our team are investigating how the rustlers get to know about the kraals. There must be some community collaborators,” added Chesang.
He asked the community to be security conscious and consider being home.
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