PHOTO: (L-R) LDEA Commander, Johnson and an agrieved citizen, Gardiner
By King Brown, sarwahking@gmail.com
BUCHANAN, Liberia- Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA) officers in the southern Grand Bassa County have come under serious criticisms from a citizen who has accused them of repeatedly harassing and intimidating people, but the local command has rejected the claims.
Mr. Jordan Gardiner, a resident of Corn Farm Community in the port city of Buchanan has claimed that he and other peaceful citizens are affected by this situation, which he described as “unacceptable and embarrassing”.
According to Mr. Gardiner, about 2Am last Saturday, a group of guys believed to be DEA officers in the County went to his house and knocked on the door, demanding to carry out intensive search in the house for illicit drugs.
He said that with the forceful knocking, they opened the door and allowed them to search the entire house for nearly 2 hours, but they could not find any illegal drugs in the house.
He told www.newspublictrust.com that he is not a drug dealer but a petty businessman who is involved in selling pepper, soap and other basic commodities, with four commercial motorbikes in the traffic and income from them is used to sustain his family.
But, he wonders why should the court that is there to provide protection for all citizens will authorize its sheriffs to execute an order in the middle of the night over illegal drugs allegations when people are asleep.
“The LDEA Commander headed a team of officers to my house at that time of the night and told me that among them were sheriffs from the Magisterial Court who have joined them to carefully search my home at any time they wish to,” Mr. Gardiner explained.
But when contacted, LDEA Commander for Grand Bassa County, George Johnson denied all of the accusations levied against him and his officers by Mr. Gardiner.
Commander Johnson said that at no point in time did he and his men ever harassed or intimidated peaceful citizens in the county.
Though he admitted going to the house of Mr. Gardiner, he said that he and his men went there between 5- 6Am during the morning hours to search his home based on an intelligence they got from some individuals.
He did not name the individuals involved in the sales of illicit drugs in the community.
According to him, their raid was based on a tipoff, something that prompted them to move in the yard and demanded to search the entire building.
Mr. Johnson said after the search and they could not find any illicit drugs, the LDEA officers left his residence in peace and appreciated him and his family for their cooperation with the officers.
“I was tormented and confused by the consistent hitting on the door by those LDEA officers and sheriffs which led me to open my door, they all entered and searched the entire house for nearly over 3 hours and could not find any illegal drugs as they alleged and later they all left the scene,” the Buchanan resident told this news outlet.
“The action of the law enforcers degraded me because my family and I were insulted, while those guys pushed my daughter away and threatened to beat her if she was going to interfere in their operations, and while defending my family, my hands were placed in handcuffs by them,” he added.
Based on his ordeal, this Buchanan resident is calling on the Ministry of Justice to step in and provide justice for his family, because of the recent action taken by the LDEA officer against them.
At the same time, the local LDEA commander is warning Mr. Jordan Gardiner to desist from linking him to allegations that he believes cannot be proven in the competent court of jurisdiction.