Liberia Grand Jury indicts 10 in US$19M cocaine trafficking and bribery case

A Montserrado Grand Jury has indicted 10 defendants in connection with a 200-kilogram cocaine trafficking scheme and subsequent bribery attempts at Roberts International Airport. The indictment alleges that the drugs were concealed in boxes falsely labeled as Maggi cubes and lappas to be shipped to the United Kingdom.

Prosecutors claim that following the seizure of the cargo in June, defendants attempted to recover the drugs through illicit payments. George Wah Harris, owner of Private Bar Entertainment Center, is accused of offering US$100,000 to Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) agents and providing a US$5,000 inducement to officer Moses Jallah.

The group of defendants includes Paul Jamaal King, an operations manager at Global Logistics Services, and Michael U. S. Brown, a former airport employee. The charges include illicit trafficking, criminal conspiracy, money laundering, and unlicensed possession of controlled drugs. Under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act of 2023, the possession and importation counts are non-bailable first-degree felonies carrying sentences of 10 to 20 years.