FORMER VICE PRESIDENT HIT WITH DRUG TRAFFICKING AND MONEY LAUNDERING CHARGES
FORMER VICE PRESIDENT HIT WITH DRUG TRAFFICKING AND MONEY LAUNDERING CHARGES
Liberia has charged former Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor with alleged drug trafficking, money laundering and several other offences, in a dramatic development that has sent shockwaves through the West African nation.
Howard-Taylor, who served as vice president from 2018 to 2024 under former President George Weah, was reportedly detained at Roberts International Airport in Monrovia before she could board a flight.
Liberian authorities accuse the former senior government official of allegedly importing, selling and transporting controlled drugs, as well as facilitating drug trafficking activities.
The investigation has also ensnared three foreign nationals—two Croatians and a Ukrainian—who have reportedly been charged in absentia over their alleged links to the same trafficking network.
Howard-Taylor has not publicly commented on the allegations.
The explosive case comes as Liberia intensifies its campaign against transnational drug trafficking, particularly the movement of cocaine through West Africa from South America to lucrative European markets.
Howard-Taylor served in one of the country’s highest offices during the Weah administration, which faced repeated allegations of corruption and financial mismanagement. President Joseph Boakai, who succeeded Weah, has pledged a tougher fight against corruption and vowed to prevent international drug traffickers from establishing operational bases in Liberia.
The latest charges could therefore become a major test of Liberia’s renewed anti-corruption and anti-narcotics campaign. Howard-Taylor remains entitled to due process and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
