The Harvard fellow was arrested by federal agents in Arizona for trying to illegally smuggle weapons worth millions of dollars to his home country. Peter Biar Ajak was charged with conspiring to purchase and illegally export fully automatic rifles, grenade launchers, Stinger missile systems, hand grenades, and sniper rifles. South Sudan is subject to an UN arms embargo due to violence between armed groups. He was arrested alongside a fellow activist, Abraham Chol Keech. The charges against Keech and Ajak include fraud by ordering up to $4 million worth of weapons and creating a “fake contract” in the same amount for “consulting services.” These services related to “human rights, humanitarian, and civil engagement inside South Sudan refugee camps.”
SOURCE: SEMAFOR