-As Boakai Awaits Justice Ministry Investigative Findings
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By Jerromie S. Walters
MONROVIA — The 48-hour investigation ordered by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai into allegations that Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency Officer-in-Charge Fitzgerald T. M. Biago received a vehicle from an individual linked to the US$317 million narcotics trafficking network expires today, Monday, with the embattled law enforcement chief’s future hanging in the balance.
Justice Minister and Attorney General Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh is expected to submit his comprehensive report to the President by the end of the day, setting the stage for a decision that could determine whether Biago retains his position at the helm of Liberia’s premier anti-narcotics agency or faces further disciplinary action.
The investigation, ordered Saturday, followed a formal recusal letter from Biago, who stepped aside after exiled Liberian Martin Kollie accused him of receiving and using a grey Toyota Hilux registered to George Wha Harris, also known as “Leroy Harris”—a businessman charged in connection with the country’s broader narcotics investigation.
Biago has categorically denied the allegation, maintaining that he neither solicited nor knowingly accepted any gift, benefit, or inducement from any person associated with illegal narcotics operations.
Despite his denial, President Boakai’s directive left no room for ambiguity: “No individual or institution is above the law,” the President stated, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to combating illegal drugs, organized crime, and corruption.
The expiration of the 48-hour deadline today marks a pivotal moment in Liberia’s escalating battle against drug trafficking, coming just weeks after authorities seized nearly four metric tons of cocaine in Duazon—one of the largest drug busts ever recorded in West Africa.
The Allegations
Investigative reports have alleged that Biago received a grey Toyota pickup truck, license plate A532084, directly from George Wha Harris, a leading suspect in the US$317 million drug trafficking network. The vehicle in question, which Biago reportedly continues to use, was registered on November 12, 2024, with an expiry date of November 11, 2025, according to documents obtained by investigative journalists.
Further allegations suggest that a second vehicle used by Biago’s wife, Valerie Pennoh Biago, was also reportedly purchased and gifted by Harris. “Part of the evidence shows that the Drug Cartel bought a brand-new green pickup for DCP Fitzgerald T. M. Biago,” investigative reports state, alleging that the vehicle was “a portion of multiple gifts, in kind and cash, rewarded to Biago and his accomplices to continuously cover up, facilitate, aid, and abet the transnational trade”. Unverified images have shown Biago in the midst of a few of those accused of being linked to the cartel.
However, the LDEA has described the allegations as false and misleading, stating that Biago has “never received or accepted the vehicle in question as being reported on social media”.
In his formal recusal letter addressed to Minister Tweh and dated August 8, 2026, Biago requested temporary recusal pending investigation, emphasizing that the decision was “not an admission of wrongdoing, but an act of institutional responsibility intended to avoid any actual or perceived conflict of interest”.
“I have neither solicited nor knowingly accepted any gift, benefit, or inducement from a drug trafficker or anyone acting on behalf of a drug-trafficking organization,” Biago wrote.
The LDEA chief pledged full cooperation with investigators and offered to provide all relevant documentation and information lawfully requested.
He also called for the timely designation of an acting official to oversee the agency’s operations during his recusal and urged that the investigation be conducted fairly, impartially, and transparently.
A Crisis of Confidence
The allegations against Biago strike at the credibility of the very institution entrusted with disrupting Liberia’s increasingly sophisticated narcotics networks. Over the past two months, authorities have intercepted record-breaking cocaine shipments worth an estimated US$300 million—237.6 kilograms at Roberts International Airport in June, followed by nearly four metric tons in Duazon.
The scale of these seizures has transformed Liberia from a country primarily battling domestic drug abuse into one confronting sophisticated transnational narcotics syndicates. But perhaps more troubling than the quantity of narcotics recovered has been the alleged involvement of public officials entrusted with law enforcement.
In recent weeks, President Boakai has dismissed or suspended senior officials across multiple security institutions, including the Liberia National Police, National Security Agency, Roberts International Airport, and the LDEA itself. Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman confirmed that the Police Chief of Highway Patrol and the Head of Major Crimes were officially arrested and charged for allegedly using their positions to escort cartel shipments.
As the 48-hour deadline approaches, civil society organizations have called for greater transparency and independence in the investigative process. The Women NGOs Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL) has also welcomed the President’s directive while cautioning that the 48-hour timeframe should not serve as an “artificial deadline for concluding a comprehensive investigation”.
“We believe this timeframe should facilitate preliminary findings, preservation of evidence and immediate recommendations rather than serve as an artificial deadline for concluding a comprehensive investigation,” the organization stated.
WONGOSOL declared that “there must be no protected persons” in the ongoing anti-drug campaign, emphasizing that “no one should be shielded from investigation or accountability because of position, political affiliation, wealth, influence or connection”.
At the same time, the organization stressed that “due process and the presumption of innocence must be fully respected”.
Sinoe County Senator Cllr. Augustine Chea has also called on potentially conflicted security officials to voluntarily step aside and allow an independent and impartial investigation into allegations surrounding the country’s anti-drug campaign. The Biago investigation follows a pattern of sweeping dismissals across Liberia’s security sector that began with President Boakai’s initial purge of LDEA leadership in August 2025.
On August 28, 2025, President Boakai issued an official Executive Mansion directive that permanently terminated former Director General Anthony K. Souh, Deputy Director General for Administration Gwee K. Porkpah, and Deputy Director General for Operations Sebastian Farr. Following the major cartel investigations at Roberts International Airport, Boakai purged field leaders embedded in transit points, including LDEA Deputy Commander at RIA Moses Jallah.
Before appointing Souh’s team, President Boakai suspended the agency’s very first leadership circle without pay following public infighting and chaos at the LDEA headquarters, later finalizing their removals. Local seizures of the synthetic drug kush more than doubled to 166.88 kilograms over nine months ending in mid-2026, reflecting the LDEA’s continued focus on the substance that has devastated youth communities across Liberia.
Five suspects and an aviation logistics company were charged over the June airport smuggling network, exposing the complicity of commercial entities in facilitating drug trafficking. The Deputy Superintendent of the Monrovia Central Prison was arrested and charged after guards intercepted packages of kush smuggled inside the facility.
