PHOTO: Defendants Emmanuel Kollie, alias porleh and Joseph Cole, alias Joe Cole
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
KAKATA, Liberia- As the German national murder case continues, State prosecution’s fourth witness from the Criminal Investigation department of the Liberia National Police, James Kartoe has been testifying in open court during the trial at the 13th Judicial Circuit Court here in Margibi County.
During his testimony, officer Kartoe said on January 22, 2020, he was officially informed by the then police commander, Sackor Freeman about a serious situation at the International Consultant Capital (ICC) logging compound in Big Joe Town, Grand Bassa County.
After being informed by his boss about the situation, he immediately moved on the scene with other criminal investigators to ascertain the said situation about an armed robbery activity, which led to the disappearance of the German national, Juergen Schedeman manager of the ICC logging company.
Late Juergen Schedeman
State witness Kartoe told the court and jury that upon his arrival at the logging compound, he barricaded the crime scene to gather evidence and began searching for the missing German national. Later, missing German man was found near an outside bathroom with with blood oozing from his stomach and several bullet wounds all over his body.
Police CID Commander James Kartoe, now assigned in Bomi County.
But when he was taken to the Liberian Government Hospital in Buchanan city, he was pronounced dead on arrival by the doctor on call.
After German man’s death was pronounced
Officer Kartoe said they later returned to the crime scene and began interviewing the private security who were on duty the night of the incident and some officials of the company whose offices were vandalized.
According to him, the management team incurred lot of losses both in cash and materials that were taken away by the alleged armed robbers. Snd some of the materials taken away include lap top computer, cash in United States dollars and some valuable phones, he told the court.
Based upon the gravity of the crime, the private security officers who were on duty when the incident occurred were invited to the police station to explain how the criminals entered the compound and took away those valuable items.
The company’s officials from different nationalities (Indian, Ghanaian, Malaysian, Ivorian and Philippine) were also invited because they were victimized as the result of the armed robbery.
During the investigation conducted with all the victims, it was established that a group of armed robbers, with single barrel shot guns, knives, cutlasses and other deadly weapons that they used to attack them, entered the compound on January 22, 2021 and held the private security under gun point. They brutalized the private security and the foreign nationals, threatening to shoot them if they leave the compound.
Police CID Commander Kartoe also narrated that based on the nature of the case, police dispatched their officers in the filed in Montserrado, Margibi, Bong and Nimba Counties to gather information that will lead to arresting those involved.
Leads during the initial investigation
Successfully, he received a very credible intelligence that those involved with the armed robbery came from Montserrado, Bong and Margibi counties with the assistance of some residents that some of the robbers came from cotton tree.
Mr. Kartoe indicated that as the result of the intelligence received, their colleagues in Bong and Margibi counties assisted them in the investigation by arresting defendant Emmanuel Kollie, alias porleh in Gbarnga, Bong County and Joseph Cole, alias Joe Cole in Cotton Tree, Margibi County. And they were taken to Buchanan, Grand Bassa County to help with the investigation.
Testifying on behalf of the state, Mr. Kartoe informed court and jury that when defendant Emmanuel Kollie alias porleh was arrested in Bong County, single barrel short gun and seven live rounds and a black iPhone were retrieved from him. At the same time, Joseph Cole was arrested based on the confession made by Emmanuel Kollie that both of them met and conspired to rob this logging company.
Defendant Joseph Cole told police investigation that the armed robbery was well planned, organized and executed by them and they used two separate motorbikes and moved to Buchanan from 1-2am on January 22, 2021 and after the attack they fled in separate directions the witness testified in court.
As for Emmanuel Kollie, alias Porleh, he made a voluntary statement to the police that after their armed robbery activities, he fled the scene and took his share of the money and materials in Gbarnga Bong County.
The witness was thoroughly cross examined and discharged by the court.
Frederick Nipay’s testimony for the state
Prosecution fifth witness took the witness in person of Frederick Nipay, head of Intelligence at the Liberia National Police has testified that he arrested defendant Emmanuel Kollie, alias porleh in Gbarnga Bong County with single barrel shot gun, including an iPhone through a search and seizure warrant from court.
Col. Nipay told the court and jury that he got a tip up before the alleged armed robbery and shooting of the German national that defendant Emmanuel Kollie was seen in Cotton tree and in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County during knowing very well from his past records he decided to launch a search for him.
After some time of search, police in Margibi County informed him that defendant Emmanuel Kollie was seen at a gambling board near Du-river where he was playing gable with 50 United States dollars.
Col. Nipay
He was also told by his informant that the defendant Kollie had a black iPhone and he gave it to one of his friends to keep for but he (Nipay) contacted the person to take the iPhone to the Kakata police commander which the friend did.
Based upon the phone retrieved led to the arrest of defendant Emmanuel Kollie and after his arrest, he was turned over to the Grand Bassa County police detachment for further investigation.
The police head of intelligence, Nipay testified also in court that defendant Emmanuel Kollie has been involved with many armed robbery activities in Bong County and its environs.
He got to know James Kollie, alias Depree ,who is also on several wanted list in Bong County for three separate armed robbery activities.
Defendant James Kollie
In 2018, at the Lone star office in Gbarnga, Bong County over ninety-three thousand United States dollars including a muroe Nissan Amera car was taken by these same defendants who are trial.
Latest in July of this year, three hundred and twenty thousand Liberian dollars and one thousand-five hundred United States dollars were armed robbed again by the defendants in Palala, Bong County.
According to Col. Nipay, Emmanuel Kollie alias porleh was in jail for separate armed robberies and being jail awaiting court trial, he master minded a jail break on April 15, 2016 in Gbarnga, Bong County.
While on his escape, defendant Emmanuel Kollie again was involved with rape and another armed robbery in the gull farm community on April 6, 2017, and he escaped to a diamond mining camp in Junglejean, Lowe Bong County, where he and Joseph Cole alias Joe were again involved with another armed robbery. But defendant Emmanuel Kollie escaped and Joe Cole were arrested and turned over to the police for investigation. And while in was incarcerated at the Gbarnga Central prison, he escaped.
Defendant Joe Cole was again involved with the September 21, 2019 armed robbery at the Lee group of companies in Bong County.
Col. Nipay concluded with his testimony that defendants Emmanuel Kollie and Joseph Cole are on several wanted listed in Bong County for armed robbery activities.
He was therefore, cross examined by the defense lawyers and discharged.
Anti-Robbery Commander’s testimony
The Prosecution’s 6ths witness, Roland A. Whornee, deputy head of the Police anti-robbery testified that on January 22,2020, about 0700hours, a special investigation team to include anti-robbery, general investigation unit, forensic unit, and police support unit of the Liberia national police and moved to Buchanan, Grand Bassa County reference to an armed robbery that resulted to the death of a German national at the ICC logging compound in big Joe town.
After they got on the crime scene, they saw all the bedrooms and offices outside down and saw some of the window glasses broken into and they found pellets from a single barrel that were used during the commission of the crimes, he said.
Officer Whornee during testimony in chief added that based upon the condition of the entire compound at the ICC in big Joe town, Buchanan, Grand Bassa County they contacted their intelligence and did some background investigation.
And their intelligence told them that those criminal used the back yard by way of the train track on two motorbikes and used the same direction to come out.
During police investigation with defendant Joe Cole he voluntarily admitted to the commission of the crimes and his accomplices Emmanuel Kollie and James Kollie, alias Depree and others to be identified.
Predicated upon their voluntarily statements, to their involvement into the crimes, they duly investigated, charged and sent to court for crimes murder, armed robbery and criminal conspiracy.
The witness also testified that in November of 2016, defendant James Kollie was involved in an armed robbery that took at rock crusher situated along the RIA high way where defendant James Kollie and accomplices and placed them gun point and discharged three live rounds which resulted the manager of the company and his wife sustained severe injuries and made away with US$61,000 and L$150,000.
The defendant James Kollie including some of his accomplices were arrested and during the investigation he voluntarily admitted to the commission of the crime and he was charged and sent to court but how was released is yet to be known.
On April 5, 2018, defendant James Kollie was again arrested for another armed robbery that took at the God willing gas station in Careyburg and during the commission of the crime, defendant James Kollie alias depree used a nine milo meter pistol to fire twelve rounds live bullet, which led the victim and his wife including their five-year-old daughter sustained bullet wounds.
The victim sustained bullet wound on her breast while he sustained bullet wound on his left leg and their daughter sustained bullet on her right leg and away with two hundred and seventy-seven thousand Liberian dollars and one thousand, nine hundred United States dollars.
Defendant James Kollie later escaped and he was at large and in 2018, defendant James Kollie was again in other armed involving Maleza Reeves at his boy town residence on the RIA highway and he was shot in the head and his vehicle damaged but on October 14,2014, the defendant was arrested in connection to the two armed robberies and he admitted committing the crime again.
By the way, defendant James Kollie was on July 25,2021 by the Zone five police commander in Mt. Barclay, Montserrado County and he was over to court for prosecution.
The witness was cross examined by the defense lawyers and discharged.