Liberian authorities have charged former Vice-President Jewel Howard-Taylor with drug trafficking, money laundering, and other offenses related to an alleged transnational narcotics network. She was detained on Wednesday at Roberts International Airport in Monrovia after being linked to the seizure of $317m worth of cocaine last month. The charges against her include unlicensed importation and sale of controlled drugs, as well as criminal solicitation and facilitation. Howard-Taylor's detention is part of a broader crackdown on cocaine trafficking in Liberia, which has seen several major seizures this summer.
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Liberian authorities have charged former Vice-President Jewel Howard-Taylor, a 63-year-old politician, with drug trafficking, money laundering, and other offenses. She was detained at the capital city's airport in Monrovia before she could board a flight on Wednesday. The charges are related to an alleged transnational narcotics network and follow the seizure of $317m (£233m) worth of cocaine last month, which police chief Gregory Coleman has linked her to. Howard-Taylor previously served as deputy to President George Weah, who picked her as his running mate in 2018, a position she held until 2024. She is also the ex-wife of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, who was convicted by a UN-backed court for aiding rebels in Sierra Leone's civil war that killed around 50,000 people** from 1991 to 2002.
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- Published
Liberia has charged former Vice-President Jewel Howard-Taylor with drug trafficking, money laundering and a range of other offences as part of an investigation into an alleged transnational narcotics network.
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Liberia → publish → network
She was detained on Wednesday before being able to board a flight at Roberts International Airport in the capital, Monrovia, the country's justice ministry confirmed.
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ministry → detain → capital
Police chief Gregory Coleman has linked her to the seizure last month of cocaine valued at $317m (£233m).
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Coleman → link → 317
The 63-year-old politician has yet to make any public comment about the charges.
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politician → have → charges
The BBC has contacted her lawyer for comment.
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Howard-Taylor went into politics after her now ex-husband, former President Charles Taylor, left power.
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husband → go → power
He was a former rebel leader who was elected Liberia's president in 1997, remaining in office until 2003.
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who → elect → 2003
Charles Taylor was later arrested and convicted by a UN-back court of aiding and abetting rebels in neighbouring Sierra Leone during the 1991-2002 civil war, in which some 50,000 people died.
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people → arrest → which
Several years later, George Weah picked Howard-Taylor as his running mate and she served as his deputy during his presidency from 2018 until 2024.
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she → pick → 2024
Howard-Tayor faces charges including the unlicensed importation, sale and transportation of controlled drugs, illicit trafficking, criminal solicitation and criminal facilitation.
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Tayor → face → drugs
Police have charged three foreign nationals - two Croatians and one Ukrainian - in absentia as part of their investigation.
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They are accused of being part of the same network as the former politician.
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Liberian Justice Minister Oswald Tweh said the authorities would use domestic and international measures to locate and arrest them.
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Liberia has stepped up a crackdown on cocaine trafficking, following two major seizures in June and July.
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Almost four tonnes of cocaine believed to be bound for Europe were found during the raid in July.
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tonnes → believe → July
The authorities described it as Liberia's biggest drug bust and said it had uncovered a sophisticated transnational trafficking network.
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The investigation has since extended to senior figures within Liberia's security establishment.
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The government says its investigations are aimed at identifying not only those directly involved in transporting drugs, but also financiers, organisers and people accused of helping to protect the operation.
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"No office is too high, no political connection is too powerful, no nationality provides immunity, and no individual is beyond the reach of the law," it said in a statement.
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West Africa has increasingly been used as a major transit route for cocaine trading from South America to Europe, with traffickers exploiting porous borders and weak enforcement in parts of the region.
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traffickers → use → region
