PHOTO: Emmanuel Kollie and single barrel gun used to kill German man
By Emmanuel Mafelah, mafelahemmanuel29@gmail.com
GBARNGA, Liberia– Police in Bong County on Monday arrested a Liberian man, Emmanuel Kollie in connection to the brutal murder of a German national, Juergen Schedema, an expatriate official of a logging company, the International Consultant Company (ICC) based in Big Joe Community, Buchanan City, Grand Bassa County.
Suspect Kollie, age 38 was arrested with three mobile phones and eight rounds of single barrel ammunition.
The late Juergen Schedema, Manager of the International Consultant Company (ICC), was discovered dead early Wednesday morning, January 22 at the back of the log yard, which is located in Big Joe Town – more than a mile away from the port city of Buchanan, which is some 88 miles from Liberia’s capital, Monrovia.
The late Juergen Schedema
Addressing journalists after the arrest, Bong County Police Commander, Frederick Nappy said that Kollie was arrested in the LPMC road community in Gbarnga.
According to Nappy, suspect Emmanuel Kollie admitted to the commission of the crime. And he has since been transferred to Grand Bassa County where the act was committed.
The local police commander in Liberia’s central Bong County confirmed to www.newspublictrust.com on Monday, January 27, 2020 that suspect Emmanuel Kolleh alisa “Pauleg” was arrested in Gbarnga, Bong County over the weekend and sent to Grand Bassa County, where the gruesome murder took place.
Gun men broke into the home of Juergen Schedema, alias Youkee and killed him during the early hours of January 22, 2020 in Big Joe Town. He was Manager of the International Consultant Company (ICC) prior to his death.
According to eyewitnesses, Saah P-Early, one of the security on duty disclosed that about 1:30 am, 13 armed robbers wearing masks, trooped into the logging company’s compound in Big Joe Town. They came from the back of the company and entered into the building and first tied the four security officers who were at the front gate and took them into a room along with some other staff of the company.
Police are currently interrogating the arrested, as a vigorous manhunt continues for the other suspected armed men said to be a dozen in number.
President George Manneh Weah has said his government will do all in its reach to arrest and prosecute ‘armed robbers’ suspected of killing a German expatriate last Wednesday in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, about 88 miles from the Liberian capital, Monrovia.
A statement on the Executive Mansion website says President Weah “extends his deepest condolences to the government and people of the Federal Republic of Germany for the brutal murder”.
He said police was working with local authorities to bring the perpetrators of the crime to justice.
Meanwhile, latest report from Grand Bassa County on Tuesday says police have arrested another member of the armed gang that raided the logging company, where the German national was killed.
Officials have so far not disclosed the name of the second man arrested. Garmah Never Lomo also contributed to this story.