By James T. Brooks
MONROVIA — In what is fast becoming the explosive scandal of the decade, a jaw-dropping betrayal at the highest levels of Liberian law enforcement has been blown wide open!
Liberia’s top Police Intelligence Chief, two high-ranking commanders, and an operative from the elite National Security Agency (NSA) have been secretly rounded up, detained, and subjected to intense interrogation. The shocking development follows the country’s largest-ever cocaine bust worth an astounding $317.68 million, and the arrested cartel suspects are naming names.
According to high-level police insiders, four high-profile law enforcement figures are currently sitting in interrogation rooms. Among them is Olufemi Briggs, the Chief of Intelligence—the very officer tasked with detecting these cartels in the first place. He is joined in custody by Waddell Kwabo, Chief of Highway Patrol; Anthony Blade, Head of Major Crimes; and Jamal Robert, an elite NSA operative.
While none of the four officers have been formally charged yet, investigators are digging deep into suspicions that they directly facilitated the movement and protection of the massive cocaine shipment.
The plot thickens with a jaw-dropping money trail that stretches straight to a local currency exchange hub in the capital.
The Betrayal: Interrogators revealed that NSA operative Jamal Robert allegedly confessed to receiving a staggering US$300,000 bribe from the drug syndicate to shield and transport the narcotics.
Robert reportedly dumped the cash with a Fula money changer on Monrovia’s Randall Street for safekeeping. On Thursday afternoon, heavily armed NSA operatives launched a high-stakes raid on Albarka Bureau and Money Remittance Inc., seizing the stash and dragging the money changer into custody.
Adding to the drama, investigators discovered phone logs connecting Major Crimes Chief Anthony Blade directly to Robert while Robert was exchanging multiple calls with key suspects in the cartel.
An explosive rift has erupted between the Liberia National Police (LNP) and the NSA over missing raid money. Sources reveal that roughly US$150,000 in cold cash was uncovered in a principal suspect’s room at Duazon during the initial raid, right in the presence of Police Inspector General Col. Gregory O. Coleman and NSA agents. However, the amount officially logged by police afterward was a mere US$17,000.
Where did the rest of the money go? The massive gap has sparked a bitter feud between the agencies, prompting National Security Advisor Samuel Kofi Woods II to initiate a discreet review.
The first official crack in the police cover-up came when Police Inspector General Col. Gregory O. Coleman publicly announced the immediate firing and interdiction of Deputy Commissioner Col. Johnny Dean.
Dean, commander of the Anti-Robbery Unit (Unit 106), confessed to accepting US$10,000 to provide “assistance and comfort” to cartel suspects already in custody. Dean, who was previously dismissed in 2015 for allegedly supplying weapons and uniforms to bank robbers, has been handed over to the Professional Standards Division for criminal prosecution.
Nobody will hide behind your offices here and try to do anything unethical… We stand ready and prepared to follow this investigation wherever the evidence leads.
Fearing systemic corruption and self-sabotage within police ranks, the NSA is aggressively moving to strip the Liberia National Police of authority over the case, seeking to relocate the entire inquiry to NSA Headquarters under the supervision of the Ministry of Justice.
The July 21 raid in Duazon, Margibi County, yielded a mind-boggling 3,971 kilograms of cocaine. Evaluated at a conservative median of $80,000 per kilogram, the consignment holds a wholesale value of US$317.68 million, while its street value could skyrocket past US$400 million once diluted.
This haul dwarfs all prior busts in Liberian history, standing seven times larger than the 2022 Freeport seizure and seventeen times larger than the Roberts International Airport bust in June.
Justice Minister N. Oswald Tweh Sr. confirmed the cartel is “organized, sophisticated, complex, and well-funded,” warning it may have operated unhindered in Liberia for over six years. High-value foreign suspects, including Colombian, Spanish, and Serbian nationals, remain in custody as the nation holds its breath to see if justice will finally be served.
