Several persons including a Korean National, Beomjin Lee, 72 and the son of Montserrado County District #12 former Representative, Isaac Richmond Anderson, have been arrested, charged and dragged to court in connection to illegal logging operations in Gbarpolu and Bomi Counties respectively.
According to a local online platform, Max Online TV, the suspects were nabbed following an investigation by the Liberia National Police (LNP) ‘Major Crime Division’ after five twenty feet containers loaded with huge quantity of round logs were confiscated by the joint security at the Clay and Sawmill checkpoints.
The suspects who have been undergoing intensive investigation over their illegal operations in both counties, were forwarded to the Monrovia City Court on Thursday, January 5, 2023 on charges of Theft of property, Economic Sabotage, Criminal Conspiracy, and Criminal facilitation.
The investigation was initiated following a written complaint from the FDA seeking police probe into illicit logging operations in Bomi and Gbarpolu Counties something which resulted into the confiscation of a huge quantity of round logs. FDA indicated that they have been hinted that the operations of those who have harvested the logs may have been done under dubious, unlawful and criminal means therefore a police probe was immediately requested.
According to Police charge sheet, the crimes contravene Chapter 15, Subchapter “D”, Section 15:51, Chapter 15, Subchapter “F” section 15.80, Chapter 10, Section 10.4, 10.2 respectively of revised penal law of Liberia.
The police charge sheet further revealed that in July 2022 suspect Isaac Richmond Anderson, son of a former lawmaker, Richmond Anderson, met with two South Korean nationals, Beomjin Lee and Jun Jean Silk to arrange the purchase and shipment of logs from Liberia though he (Richmond) had no legal permit to operate in the sector.
As a means of executing is dubiously driven plans, Anderson later introduced the Koreans to the CEO of ECHO Group of Companies identified as N. Edwin Wesley during which time an MoU was signed between both parties.
Due to some disagreements between the ECO Group of Campanies and the Koreans, the MoU was abandoned for the alleged demand of US$12,000 by the CEO of Eco Group after which Suspect Dauoda Sessay alias CO-5 was entrusted by the Koreans to arrange the logs’ cutting, transportation and shipment from Gbarpolu County to the Freeport of Monrovia.
Dauoda than contacted Isaac Railey, Chief of Law Enforcement, FDA who later invited one Peter Kpadeh, Commerce monitor for Export, Freeport of Monrovia to arrange the shipment of the logs from Gbarpolu and Bomi counties to Freeport. In the process, Kpadeh than contacted two Custom Brokers namely Prince Kwesi Wallace and David Taweh to assist in the arrangements with custom authority at the Freeport of Monrovia for the exportation of the logs.
Police record also disclosed that suspects Anderson, Sesay, Beomjin Lee (Korean National) and one Askie to be identified, negotiated with one Fatu Bonnah Samukai a local farm owner in Gbarpolu and participated in the harvesting and marking of the logs in Gbarpolu County while Suspect Dauoda Sesay arranged and paid for four trucks for the transportation of the logs.
According to the police, Defendant Varney Marshall and suspect Edward Jallah employees of the FDA assigned a Clay checkpoint met with suspect Sesay ( Co-5) who claimed to be the owner of the logs. He allegedly arranged with FDA employees to allow the trucks with containers of logs to pass through the Clay checkpoint without proper assessment of all legal documents as US$400.00 was paid in exchange for said gesture.
The LNP investigation also discovered that the Korean national Lee conspired with Anderson and Dauoda Sesay and others in Bomi and Gbarpolu counties and negotiated the with oldma Fatu Bonnah and they agreed on the payment of US$2,800 per tree without the availability of any legal FDA permit or other documents. The amount, according to the LNP was never paid to Ma Fatu Bonneh for the logs.
Meanwhile, the LNP has disclosed that Suspect Dauoda Sesay alias CO-5 is at large. Suspect Dauoda also presented an export logging permit at the Clay checkpoint which he claimed was provided to him by the Forestry Development Authority (FDA). Nobody at the FDA has taken responsibility for the issuance of a Export permit or license for round log (EKKI). According to police sources, a senior FDA refused to show up for the investigation after his name was mentioned during the investigation.
