By Festus Poquie
Liberia’s national police said a trafficking network behind a cocaine shipment at Roberts International Airport tried to bribe security personnel and recover the drugs after the consignment was uncovered, in what investigators say was part of a broader criminal enterprise.
Inspector General Gregory Coleman said the probe found that six boxes prepared for shipment on June 5 were falsely declared as containing Maggi cubes and lappa, a local cloth.
The cargo was stopped after screening discrepancies, suspicious images and conflicting documentation raised alarm, and a re-inspection two days later revealed a white powder later confirmed to be cocaine.
“The evidence establishes that after the consignment was exposed, there were deliberate efforts by members of the trafficking network to bribe security personnel, recover the shipment, and interfere with the seizure,” Coleman said in a statement.
The Liberia National Police, working with the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency and other security partners, said the investigation has extended beyond the seizure itself and now includes cargo records, airway bills, communications, financial transactions, digital evidence and witness testimony. Authorities say the findings indicate the June shipment was not an isolated incident.
Investigators also uncovered an earlier shipment in May 2026 that used the same false-declaration method and was linked to the same network, Coleman said. That suggests the operation may have relied on repeated use of Liberia’s airport cargo system to move narcotics, while attempting to pressure or influence security officers after detection.
Police identified Paul King, manager of Global Logistics Services, as having conspired to facilitate, store and transport the cargo through the airport chain. Michael U.S. Brown, also known as Rahim Bah, was linked to organizing the shipment, coordinating the cargo, using false declarations and trying to recover the cocaine after it was seized.
Oscar Brown was tied to the earlier May shipment and to communications about the June consignment after the drugs had already been discovered, according to police. Emmanuel Park was identified as the person who delivered both shipments to Global Logistics Services, while Usma Ali was named as the consignee.
Several suspects have been charged in absentia, and authorities said they are pursuing arrest warrants, extradition requests and mutual legal assistance for others believed to be outside Liberia or evading arrest.
Coleman said the investigation remains active and is being treated as a network probe aimed at identifying “every participant, financier, organizer, handler, courier, facilitator, insider, and foreign connection.”
The police chief also said authorities are working to tighten cargo-screening and chain-of-custody procedures at Roberts International Airport to reduce the risk of future smuggling attempts and possible corruption inside the security system.
