Social media went into a frenzy Monday morning after a video surfaced showing a fistfight between officers of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) and a man identified as Clifford Payne, alleged to be an employee in the office of Vice President Jeremiah Koung.
According to footage, Payne reportedly visited the LDEA depot in Brewerville to secure the release of a friend arrested over the weekend for alleged drug possession.
The video suggests that some LDEA officers had accepted a bribe from Payne in exchange for the suspect’s release but later reneged on the deal.
Payne, demanding his money back, clashed with the officers. During the scuffle, Payne’s identification card was seized and displayed on a live Facebook broadcast, showing his connection to the Vice President’s office.
Reacting swiftly, Vice President Koung took to Facebook, issued statement distancing himself from the incident.
He said that anyone linked to him—whether by family, employment, or friendship—would face the full weight of the law if involved in drug-related activities.
“Let me state this with absolute clarity and without contradiction: Anyone, and I mean anyone, connected to me by whatsoever means, whether by blood, by marriage, by employment, or by friendship, who engages in drug-related activities will face the full weight of the law,” Koung wrote. “Whether it is my wife, my children, my siblings, or anyone linked to my office, the law will take its course without hesitation and without interference.” Shortly after Koung’s post, the live video stream was taken down.
