Cllr. Ja’neh says his client was removed from the Monrovia Central Prison by senior Liberian National Security Actors.
Monrovia, November 12, 2024: Liberia’s former Associate Justice Cllr. Kabineh M. Ja’neh has accused Justice Minister Oswald N. Tweh and Police Chief Gregory Coleman of allegedly kidnapping his client, Khalifa Charif (Sheriff).
Kidnapping is a first-degree felony crime in Liberia.
According to Cllr. Ja’neh, Charif’s house, was raided more than six weeks ago and was later committed to the Monrovia Central Prison by a court order.
However, Cllr. Ja’neh has further claimed that early Sunday morning on November 3, 2024, between 3 and 4 a.m., Col. Coleman headed a team of security officers and bulldozed their way into the Central Prison compound.
Ja’neh claimed that without any reference to the court, which committed Mr. Charif to detention, the security forces took Mr. Charif away.
Counsellor Ja’neh also said that senior Liberian government National Security Actors ordered his client’s removal from Monrovia Central Prison.
“Although my client, Khalifa Charif, spent most of his early childhood in the Republic of Guinea due largely to the Liberian civil conflict, that does not make him a Guinean national, as being falsely circulated by Liberian state Security officials,” Ja’neh explained.
According to Cllr. Ja’neh, his client Charif’s money was allegedly seized by a joint team of Liberia National Police (LNP) and National Security Agency (NSA) officers who raided his home.
The former Associate Justice alleged that the officers did not present any warrant during the raid.
“To date, the officers who raided Mr. Charif’s premises under the instructions of the Inspector General of Police and the Solicitor General, Ministry of Justice, have continued to defy the court’s orders to bring to court all of the items seized, including cash and two vehicles,” Cllr. Ja’neh said.
This act, according to Cllr. Ja’neh is a concrete demonstration of lawlessness under the Boakai Administration.
Cllr. Ja’neh has vowed to ensure that Mr. Charif is released as ordered by the court without any further delay.
The former Justice Minister said that he would personally organize public demonstrations against National Security officers as the current administration no longer respects court orders.
“The demonstrations against police officers will continue, according to Cllr. Ja’neh, until the court’s orders releasing Mr. Charif are FULLY COMPLIED WITH,” a release issued in Monrovia said.
