PHOTO: Harper Central Prison Lies In Ruins
By Charles Gbayor, maorethason1997@gmail.com
HARPER, Liberia- The Justice Ministry is calling on those shielding any of the Harper runaway prisoners to turn them over, weeks after angry mob stormed and ransacked the facility, 403 kilometers southeast of Monrovia.
The prisoners were set free by angry mobs who broke into the Harper Central Prison following a violent protest that followed the recent ritual killing of motorcyclist Mordacious Nyemah.
Among those set free during the carnage was Moses Mlama prime suspect connected to the killing of Nyemah (a student of the Pleebo High School in Maryland).
The prison was looted and set ablaze, as the private residence in Pleebo City of House Speaker Dr. Bhofal Chambers. Among items looters reportedly made away with from the Speaker’s home and the prison were generators, computers and bags of rice.
Some 91 inmates who were behind bars at the Harper Central Prison prior to the riot are currently on the run.
The Liberia National Police’s County detachment in Maryland, along with other government and private properties were also utterly destroyed.
Government has put the total cost of the damage caused at 2 million USD
The security were overwhelmed by the large number of protestors, thus making it impossible for them to stabilize the situation.
Besides the trail of destruction left behind by rioters, the Pleebo, Harper carnage showed the level of vulnerability of Maryland County in the southeast of the country, like other political subdivisions.
Those arrested and charged with Nyema’s murder include Jeremiah Appleton alias “Open Zipper”, Moses Mlarmah (prime suspect) Francis Kla Nyema, Leo K. Williams and Alice Davis.