Liberia: Ex-LDEA Airport Deputy Rearrested in U.S.$19.2m Cocaine Case

Liberia's former LDEA deputy commander at Roberts International Airport, charged in the country's US$19.2 million cocaine case, was rearrested trying to fly out of the same terminal where the cocaine was seized.

Moses Jallah was taken back into custody and brought before the Monrovia City Court on Aug. 10, after authorities received information that he attempted to board a flight out of the country while the investigation against him remained active.

Prosecutors are now considering charges that would shift Jallah's portrayal from a man accused of interfering with the investigation to someone accused of aiding the shipment. The Ministry of Justice's Special Investigation Team charged him days earlier with obstructing law enforcement, interfering with a government function, and tampering with a criminal investigation. None of those charges allege he trafficked cocaine, even though investigators connected his actions to the attempted export of 237.6 kilograms of suspected cocaine valued by authorities at about US$19.2 million.

Any amended charge involving trafficking, facilitation or conspiracy would place him at the center of the operation rather than at its edge. None has been filed.

The case started with six cargo boxes at Roberts International Airport declared as general merchandise, including lappas and Maggi cubes, and booked for England. Screeners noticed discrepancies between the declared weight and the X-ray images, and a physical inspection revealed a white powdery substance later confirmed as cocaine.

Investigators allege Jallah became involved in the case after the cocaine was discovered, during efforts to get the cargo released. The investigation names businessman George Harris, also known as Leroy Harris, who runs a bar in Paynesville, as one of those who contacted senior security and law enforcement officials, including Jallah, and offered money for the cargo's release. Investigators claim Jallah later met with Harris despite knowing his connection to the shipment, and that he had prior knowledge of individuals linked to the operation but did not act on that information.

Jallah dismissed the allegations in a statement within the investigation report. He stated that he acted on intelligence from his superiors and reported the approaches he received to the appropriate authorities. He claimed he was offered money to halt the inspection and prevent arrests, and he forwarded that offer up his chain of command. He also said he had been gathering intelligence on some of the individuals later implicated in the case. The Special Investigation Team concluded that his account did not eliminate his criminal liability and recommended prosecution.

The alleged airport attempt raises a question the state has not answered: how a man charged in the country's largest narcotics case was able to go through the departure process at the national airport without a travel restriction against him.

Prosecutors must now determine what Jallah knew, when he knew it, and whether his actions after the cocaine surfaced were intended to aid the shipment or hinder its seizure. He has not been convicted of any crime.

Read the original article on Liberian Investigator.