Allegations and Key Claims
The information alleges that Civitas Maxima (CM), a Swiss-based NGO led by Alain Werner, along with partner organizations including the Global Justice Research Project (GJRP) led by Hassan Bility, an NGO in Finland represented by Hannes Snellman, and a key partner in the United States (the Center for Justice and Accountability), have systematically engaged in fraudulent practices. These practices reportedly include filing false affidavits and recruiting—as well as coaching and paying—witnesses to provide fabricated testimonies. The ultimate aim, as the account suggests, is to trigger international arrest warrants for alleged war crimes actors from Liberia, thereby profiting from what is termed “war crimes prosecution theatres.” Both in the US and elsewhere. They continue to be engaged in frequent travel to the US and supporting US prosecutions with reportedly tainted witnesses, tainted evidence used and targeting American Citizens.
Agnes Reeves Case (United Kingdom, 2017 – Falsely Accused, Arrested, detained 27 Months & Released)
According to reports, Alain Werner provided an affidavit under oath containing false statements regarding Agnes Reeves. On March 27, 2017, he submitted a written request to the Metropolitan Police Department in London, urging an investigation into Reeves. Werner went on to provide multiple statements, all of which were later proven to be false. One particularly egregious claim came from Morris Jabeteh—who allegedly received financial compensation for his cooperation—asserting that he had killed former Liberian Superintendent Amos Bohrn under orders from Reeves. However, Bohrn was later discovered alive and residing in London, completely dismantling that allegation.
The misleading investigation, prompted by Werner’s affidavit and false claims, ultimately led to Reeves’ arrest and her unjust detention for 27 months. Additionally, Jabeteh falsely asserted that Reeves had used the alias “Massa Musa,” a fabricated war name designed to help coached witnesses recall and identify alleged perpetrators. This tactic—assigning fictitious aliases to individuals—was reportedly employed in multiple cases, allowing witnesses to claim recognition of suspects based on fabricated identifiers.
After the case collapsed due to the discovery of inconsistencies and falsehoods, Reeves was released in December 2019. Despite this, Werner allegedly persisted in attempting to manufacture additional evidence in an effort to prolong her prosecution. However, his efforts were thwarted when an insider witness exposed the fraudulent scheme.
Following her release, Reeves filed a $2 million lawsuit against Werner and his associate, Hassan Bility, Executive Director of the Global Justice Research Project, citing malicious prosecution.
Gibril Massaquoi Case (Finland, 2020-2024 – Falsely Accused, Arrested and Detained for 2 years and Acquitted Twice)
In 2018, regarding the case against Gibril Massaquoi in Finland, Alain Werner and his organization, Civitas Maxima (CM), collaborated with Hassan Bility and the Global Justice Research Project (GJRP) to submit an affidavit through their strategic partner, the Finnish-based NGO Hannes Snellman. This affidavit was handed over to Finnish authorities, prompting the arrest and prosecution of Massaquoi.
Upon receiving the affidavit from Hannes Snellman, Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) sought verification from Civitas Maxima in Switzerland. During a meeting attended by Alain Werner, he allegedly reaffirmed to investigator Thomas Elfgren and his team that the affidavit’s contents were accurate and truthful.
Following this confirmation, the NBI made two investigative trips to Liberia in 2019 to review witness statements and gather additional testimonies. CM and GJRP were reportedly involved in sourcing these new witnesses. The initial affidavit provided by GJRP and CM contained seven statements, purportedly detailing allegations against Massaquoi. Among these claims was a statement from Hassan Bility himself, asserting that Massaquoi had tortured him at Klay in early August 2002. This statement, along with others recorded by Civitas Maxima’s senior investigator, Lisa-Marie Rudi, was later challenged and deemed false.
The only legitimate detail in the affidavit appeared to be a statement from a seminar on the Helsinki University website, which CM had copied and included among the fabricated allegations. Additionally, false information was reportedly inserted into the affidavit, including an incorrect telephone number claimed to belong to Massaquoi, a fabricated email address that he had never used, and a fraudulent Google travel record associated with company locations in Finland.
After the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) conducted two investigative trips to Liberia in 2019—working closely with both Civitas Maxima (CM) and the Global Justice Research Project (GJRP)—they collected statements from 84 additional witnesses, increasing the total number of statements to 91. These testimonies were presented to the District Court of Tampere on March 12, 2020, leading to the legal detention of Massaquoi, who had been arrested two days earlier on March 10, 2020.
Among the newly gathered witness testimonies, two individuals—provided to the NBI by GJRP—claimed in both pretrial and court statements that Massaquoi had killed Johnny Paul Koroma, former head of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) in Sierra Leone, in 2001 in Lofa County, Liberia. However, this allegation was demonstrably false, as Koroma remained alive until 2003, even standing as a presidential candidate in Sierra Leone’s May 2002 elections.
Additionally, many of the witnesses, like in the Agnes Reeves case, were reportedly coached to refer to Massaquoi using a fabricated war name, “Angel Gabriel”, a name he had never used and was never associated with during the period specified in the indictment. The prosecution continuously revised its indictment as witness statements evolved, including those of Hassan Bility, the case’s star witness. Bility provided 13 different versions of his account regarding his alleged arrest, timing, and torture at Klay, outside Monrovia.
Notably, the name “Angel Gabriel” surfaced for the first time during the Charles Taylor trial in January 2009, when Bility claimed that Massaquoi had been sent by Liberian Police Chief Joe Tate in 2002 to torture him until he confessed to being involved in a coup against Taylor. However, this claim was factually impossible, as Joe Tate had died in a plane crash in 1999, meaning he could not have ordered Massaquoi to carry out any actions in 2002.
During Bility’s final statement to the Tampere District Court, made via telephone from Monrovia, he asserted that Massaquoi was a member of Taylor’s Special Security Service (SSS). However, defense witness John Tamba Bengue, a known SSS officer, categorically refuted Bility’s claim, stating that Massaquoi was never an SSS member and was never present in Klay during the alleged events. Bengue even provided a list of known Special Forces operatives responsible for the reported incidents—none of whom included Massaquoi.
Additionally, throughout Massaquoi’s trial, evidence emerged that Werner had continued to contact, recruit, and coach witnesses to provide false testimony against Massaquoi. Several witnesses admitted that they were approached by Werner and that they fabricated statements under oath, highlighting a systematic effort to manipulate testimonies.
Allegations Against Alain Werner and Hassan Bility in U.S. Visa Fraud Cases
Similar allegations against Alain Werner and Hassan Bility surfaced during the U.S. visa fraud cases involving Jungle Jabateh and Tom Woewiyu. In both cases, reports indicate that witnesses were coached and provided false testimony to support immigration fraud prosecutions.
Jungle Jabateh Case
Witnesses alleged that Jabateh committed war crimes in Liberia, including acts of extreme brutality. However, as the investigation progressed, contradictions and inconsistencies emerged in their testimonies. Some witnesses reportedly admitted they were coached to provide statements that aligned with the prosecution’s claims, raising concerns about the credibility of the case.
Tom Woewiyu Case
Similarly, in the case of Tom Woewiyu, allegations surfaced that false affidavits and manipulated witness testimony were used to build the case against him. Reports suggest Werner and Bility played a direct role in recruiting individuals who were allegedly instructed to provide misleading statements regarding Woewiyu’ s involvement in Liberia’s civil war.
Michel Desaedeleer (2015-2016 Falsely Accused, Arrested and Died in Custody in Belgium)
In 2015, Michel Desaedeleer, a US/Belgium citizen, was arrested in Spain under a European arrest warrant, with allegations linking him to war crimes committed during Sierra Leone’s civil war. The case against him was largely built on evidence gathered by Civitas Maxima and its affiliated organizations.
Desaedeleer was accused of collaborating with Charles Taylor and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) to enslave civilians and force them to mine diamonds in Sierra Leone’s Kono district between 1999 and 2001. These diamonds were allegedly smuggled into Liberia and sold to finance the RUF’s activities. However, reports later surfaced suggesting that the accusations were fabricated, with witnesses allegedly coached to provide false testimony. Former RUFP government officials, familiar with the case, advised Desaedeleer was never be involved in any criminal activity and the allegations made against him were false. The former Chief of Investigations, Diamond Section, Belgium National Police, Brussels, Belgium who investigated diamond smuggling cases involving Liberia and Sierra Leone during the period in question (1999-2002) there was NO trace of any involvement of Desaedeleer’ s involvement in illicit trade of diamonds.
Belgian authorities took jurisdiction over the case due to Desaedeleer’ s Belgian nationality, allowing them to prosecute him under active nationality jurisdiction for crimes committed abroad. However, before the trial could proceed, Desaedeleer died in a Belgian jail on September 28, 2016, under circumstances that raised concerns about the credibility of the case against him. His death prevented further legal action, leaving many questions unanswered about the validity of the evidence provided by Civitas Maxima.
I am calling on the US Attorney General to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the allegations against Alain Werner and Hassan Bility for coaching witnesses to provide false statements and false testimony in malicious prosecutions and targeting American Citizens.
Secretary Rubio should impose Visa restrictions on Alain Werner and Hassan Bility for targeting American Citizens and falsely accusing them of crimes and trying to silence their freedom of speech.
Alvin Smith is a Criminal Justice, Homeland Security and Counter Terrorism Expert based in Washington, DC, serving as the Chief Investigator for the Movement for Justice in Liberia (MJL), a non-governmental organization committed to investigating and reporting on human rights abuses, public corruption, and issues of justice and accountability. MJL works to advocate for victims while also defending individuals falsely accused of criminal activity.
Background: He earned a Master of Arts in International Relations, and Global Security with a concentration in Conflict Resolutions at American Military University holds a Master of Science in Criminal Justice with concentration in Homeland Security from Colorado Technical University. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with a concentration in Homeland Security Emergency Management from Strayer University and an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice from Everest College. He has been certificated by the United States Department of Defense and other Agencies, Al Smith was deployed twice with the Northern Alliance Treaty Organization (NATO) Security Mission, US Department of Defense, He also provided joint protection construction for the 44th United States Presidential Inaugural Grandstand.
