By: Julius Konton
The Interim Management Team at the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency has intensified its robust fight against drugs with the arrest of 1,929 kilograms of compresed marijuana in the Brewerville community, district seventeen, Montserrado County.
According to the Office in charge of the LDEA Fitzgerald Biago the arrest which is a significant milestone in the government fight against illegal trafficking and distribution of narcotics across the Country was done following a carefully coordinated intelligence.
According to him, the seizure of the huge quantity of marijuana is estimated at twenty seven million eight hundred and fifty thousand, seven hundred and sixty Liberian dollars and approximately one hundred and forty six thousand, six hundred and four united states dollars respectively.
Biago brags that their latest move is a clear message to all who engage in the illegal trade that Liberia will not be a safe haven for drugs trafficking.
As part of the ongoing efforts, the LDEA arrested two persons in connection to the crime, they are Umar Mohammed thirty eight years old Nigerian national commonly known as Degote , a well known drug trafficker within the West Africa subregion and Abdullah Kamara, a Sierra Leonean age, eighteen years.
The two suspects are currently in the LDEA custody undergoing thorough investigation.
The acting LDEA boss staed that upon conclusion of the investigation the suspects will be appropriately charged and forwarded to court for prosecution in accordance with the laws of Liberia.
Even though the investigation is still ongoing but Mr. Biago told the media that the huge quantity of drugs entered made via land as more details he assured the media will be made available subsequently.
Providing further details on their ongoing operations, he informed the media that the LDEA continues to make strategic arrests and confiscation as part of its nationwide operations.
“We are intensifying our collaboration with the communities, Civil society organizations, and our international partners to root out drug networks and dismantle their operations at every level”, he added.
According to him, since their appointment, they have been working tirelessly to redefine the operational scope of the Agency to include a comprehensive review of internal protocols and produces to ensure the LDEA becomes more professional, transparent and accountable.
As a means of demonstrating transparency and accountability, The acting LDEA boss announced the withdrawal of all officers assigned at the Roberts International Airport due to concerns of alleged misconduct.
He said out of the eight LDEA officers, two are carefully under investigation for underreporting the quantity of narcotics confiscated during a recent Airport seizure .
” The LDEA will not tolerate any act of corruption, negligence or actions that undermine the integrity of the agency.
Speaking about their recent drug testing exercises in Bomi and Montserrado Counties, its headquarters, he disclosed that the process have been successfully completed.
However, he confirmed that the six officers arrested in Bomi County were tested positive of illegal drug abuse.
He named the officers as: Larwou Yekeh, C. Tony Granett, Nyumah Millimono, Lawrence J. Fejue, Milton Brown, all volunteers and Roosevelt T. Kollie, an employee of the LDEA with specimen number as #M -43SEC-3 stating that those linked have all been dismissed with immediate effect.
“This is just the beginning as we are committed to purging the agency of any elements that compromise our credibility and mission”, he re-emphasized.
Biago at the same time assured the Liberian people that the safety and future of the youth remain their highest priority.
He maintain that the LDEA stands firms and is unwavering in its commitment to restore dignity to the agency and to as well deliver results that the Liberian people can trust.
