KEY POINTS

  • The victim identified as 45-year-old Adhieu Chaping died of injuries after being attacked by the sheep
  • The sheep's owner would lose custody of the animal once it would be released from prison
  • The owner of the sheep and the victim's family has come into a formal contract with the police and community officials as witnesses

A sheep in Africa has been sentenced to three years in prison after the animal was found guilty of killing a woman.

The woman identified as 45-year-old Adhieu Chaping was fatally attacked by the ram in Rumbek East County in South Sudan earlier this month. The court ordered the ram to be kept in a military camp prison in Aduel County headquarters in Lakes State in South Sudan, while the owner identified as Duony Manyang Dhal, has to pay "blood compensation," which involves giving up five of his cows to the victim's family, Joe reported.

The police took the ram into custody after the woman died of injuries from the attack. "Our role as police is to provide safety and separate fights. The ram was apprehended and currently under custody at a Police Station of Maleng Agok Payam," Major Elijah Mabor said as reported by Lad Bible.

"The owner is innocent, and the ram is the one who perpetrated the crime so it deserves to be arrested then later on the case shall be forwarded to customary court where the case can be handled amicably," Mabor explained.

Dhal's family and the victim’s family are related and neighbors.

According to reports, Dhal would further lose custody of the sheep for murder once it is released from prison, as the local law insists that the animal should be gifted to the bereaved family as further compensation.

Both the families have signed a formal contract accepting the terms of the agreement with the police and community leaders as witnesses.

animal-gd92b442b3_640
representational image pixabay

Last year, a 73-year-old woman volunteering at a farm in Massachusetts was fatally attacked by a comfort animal, while she was working alone in a pen. The longtime volunteer at the farm identified as Kim Taylor was attacked by a sheep at the facility that provides farm-based therapy programs to improve mental health. Taylor was left with severe injuries in the attack and went into cardiac arrest shortly after first responders arrived. She was taken to a hospital where she succumbed to her injuries.