Liberia: Eugene Nagbe Alleges Official Collusion in Liberia's Cocaine Trade, Disputes Government's U.S.$19 Million Valuation

What the report says

AllAfrica, republishing a Liberian Investigator report, says Eugene Nagbe, a senior official in former President George Weah’s administration, has accused unnamed people in authority of helping drug traffickers move cocaine through Liberia. Nagbe made the claim Tuesday on Okay Morning Rush in Monrovia, arguing that recent seizures at Roberts International Airport and in the VOA Community point either to serious border-control failures or official complicity.

Nagbe, who served as chief of office staff to Weah, questioned how large narcotics shipments could enter through sites such as the Freeport or Roberts International Airport while ordinary imports face inspection and taxation. He also challenged the Boakai administration’s valuation of a June 8 seizure of 237.6 kilograms of cocaine at about US$19.2 million, saying it appeared inconsistent with a 2022 case involving 520 kilograms valued at US$100 million. He suggested authorities should explain whether differences in purity, dilution or valuation methods account for the gap.

The report says Nagbe compared the current cases with the 2022 cocaine operation, which he described as involving U.S. support and a tracked shipment from South America. Four people were later indicted in that case on charges including conspiracy, money laundering and unlawful importation of controlled substances, but a jury acquitted them after prosecutors failed to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

Nagbe blamed the courts rather than the executive for that outcome and said Liberia’s anti-drug efforts will remain weak if major cases collapse and officials cannot clearly explain how drugs enter the country or how seizure values are calculated. The allegations matter because Liberia has faced growing public concern about its role as a transit point for narcotics in West Africa.