Junta soldiers accused of burgling uninhabited homes in Sittwe

By Admin 18 Dec 2024

DMG Newsroom
18 December 2024, Sittwe

Unoccupied homes in Sittwe were reportedly burgled and valuables were allegedly stolen by junta soldiers in recent days.

Regime troops are accused of breaking into and ransacking unoccupied homes in Sittwe wards such as Kontan, Ywagyi Mrauk, Shwe Pyar, Lanmataw and Shwepyitha.

“Junta soldiers burgled unoccupied homes in some wards in Sittwe. Junta soldiers conducted security checks on residents and took photos,” said a local man in Sittwe.

Junta soldiers were also searching occupied homes and checking residents’ household registration certificates, the Sittwe man added.

Junta soldiers and police burgled unoccupied homes in Ywagyi Mrauk and Kontan wards in Sittwe in the second week of December.

Most residents of Sittwe have been in hiding since April due to fears of fighting. Since these residents fled, there have been periodic spates of burglaries of unoccupied homes.

“There have been many break-ins in Sittwe, even in daytime. Unoccupied homes were burgled and valuables were allegedly stolen. Most breaks-in and burglaries are reported in Shwepyitha and Shwe Pyar wards in Sittwe,” said a local woman.

The regime set up additional security checkpoints in Sittwe, arresting some passersby and extorting money from them.

Junta soldiers detained residents from Sittwe’s Shwepyitha and Mingan wards on December 1 on the pretext of having conducted overnight guest checks.

There is ongoing military tension between the military and the Arakkha Army (AA) in Sittwe Township, with sporadic clashes between the two sides.