Office Of Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe, Jr.

24/07/2026

BY POPULAR DEMAND; A MUST READ!

There is no stronger argument now than ever before for an independent investigation. Our joint statement is making more and more sense…

Joint Statement by Senators Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr. and Amara Konneh on Recent Charges Filed Against Five Individuals in the Co***ne Bust in Liberia

July 7, 2026
Capitol Building, Monrovia

The seizure of approximately 237.6 kilograms of co***ne at Roberts International Airport highlights a serious threat to Liberia’s national security. It raises major concerns about the country’s justice system and rule of law, border security, and public safety.

We commend the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), the Liberia National Police (LNP), and all supporting Joint Security agencies for their coordinated efforts in intercepting this shipment before it could cause further harm to our communities and more damage to Liberia’s international reputation.

We also commend Inspector General of Police Gregory O.W. Coleman, the Liberia National Police, and the broader Joint Security Team for bringing charges against five individuals allegedly connected to the reported US$19.2 million co***ne trafficking case: Michael U.S. Browne, also known as Rahim or Raheem Bah; Paul J. King; Oscar Browne; Emmanuel Kpah; and Usman Ali. According to the Liberia National Police, these individuals have been linked to this serious criminal enterprise.

However, the circumstances surrounding this investigation raise troubling questions that require clear, credible answers.

According to information released by the authorities, two suspects, Oscar Browne and Paul J. King, were outside Liberia when the investigation started and were later declared persons of interest. At the same time, it has been alleged that Michael U.S. Browne and Emmanuel Kpah were present in Liberia during the early stages of the investigation. If this is true, it raises an obvious question: how were these suspects able to evade arrest?

The Liberian people deserve full transparency regarding whether these individuals were under surveillance, whether operational failures allowed them to escape, or whether other circumstances contributed to their departure from Liberia’s jurisdiction.

Simply put, drugs worth approximately US$19.2 million reportedly entered Liberia and were on the verge of being exported through the country’s only international airport. Yet, despite the magnitude of this case, no suspect appears to have been physically arrested by national security agencies before leaving the country, even though the Officer-in-Charge of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency publicly stated that persons of interest were in custody.

According to official statements, the only individual currently in custody is the suspect who voluntarily boarded a flight in the United States, returned to Liberia, and surrendered to national security authorities upon his arrival at Roberts International Airport.

If these are indeed the facts, they raise serious questions about the effectiveness of our security institutions and our commitment to combating transnational organized crime.

The key question the Joint Security Taskforce needs to answer is: How could a co***ne shipment worth US$19.2 million be intercepted without any suspects being caught by our security forces before leaving the country?

Are we truly serious about enforcing the law and expecting the international community to take Liberia seriously in the fight against organized crime?

Furthermore, while we acknowledge the efforts made thus far, the investigation must not end with those allegedly connected to the attempted exportation of the co***ne. Equal attention must now be devoted to uncovering the entire criminal network behind this operation.

The following questions remain unanswered:
• Who financed the importation of these drugs?
• How did the co***ne enter Liberia by air, sea, or land?
• Where was it stored, concealed, or repackaged before being transported to the airport?
• Who coordinated the logistics of this operation?
• Which financial institutions or other entities, if any, were used to launder the proceeds?
• Who are the additional local and international collaborators?
• Were any public officials or state security personnel involved, either directly or indirectly?

The Liberian people deserve answers to these questions.

Drug trafficking poses a direct threat to our youth, our families, our institutions, and our national security. Given the scale of this seizure and its apparent international dimensions, this matter demands a comprehensive, impartial, and evidence-based investigation that follows every lead, regardless of where it may lead.

Accordingly, we call for an independent investigation conducted with the full cooperation and technical support of Liberia’s international partners to ensure that every individual responsible, from financiers and importers to traffickers, facilitators, and any public officials who may have aided this criminal enterprise, is identified, investigated, and prosecuted in accordance with the law.

The Liberian people deserve nothing less than the full truth, complete accountability, and justice. We are committed to working with our colleagues in the Senate to ensure just that.

13/07/2026

Bomi County Senator, Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr. writes:

I extend my sincere gratitude to Mr. Wantoe Teah Wantoe and the entire Oxford community for the warm welcome to Green Templeton College and for the opportunity to discuss on the topic - “Strengthening Regional Democracy: The ECOWAS Parliament and the Future of Constitutional Governance in West Africa”, which represents one of the defining issues of our time.

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to lead and participate in ECOWAS parliamentary missions across several West African countries. Those experiences have shown me that democracy cannot be sustained by constitutions alone. It depends on strong institutions, principled leadership, respect for the rule of law, and the collective commitment of citizens to uphold democratic values. They have also reinforced my conviction that regional cooperation remains indispensable to preserving constitutional order, promoting peace, and responding to emerging challenges across our sub-region.

Oxford has long been a place where ideas shape institutions and where dialogue influences the course of history. To contribute to those conversations was both a privilege and a profound responsibility.

I am deeply grateful for your hospitality, your intellectual curiosity, and your commitment to building bridges across nations and generations. I leave Oxford encouraged by the conviction that, through partnership, informed dialogue, and principled leadership, we can strengthen democratic institutions and advance peace, constitutional governance, and shared prosperity for the benefit of our people and our region.

13/07/2026

11/07/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Saturday, July 11, 2026, Monrovia, Liberia: Bomi County Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr. has arrived in London, United Kingdom, to honor an invitation to participate in a series of academic and policy engagements organized by the Oxford African Governance Forum.

These engagements, scheduled to begin Monday, July 13-15, 2026, will bring together academics, students, policymakers, diplomats, researchers, as well as members of the African diaspora to examine contemporary governance challenges and opportunities across West Africa.

Senator Snowe, Chairman of the ECOWAS Parliamentary Committee on Political Affairs, Peace, Security and African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), will speak on the subject: "Strengthening Regional Democracy: The ECOWAS Parliament and the Future of Constitutional Governance in West Africa" on Monday, July 13, 2026, in the Barclay Room, Green Templeton College, University of Oxford.

Considering his rich experience in leading parliamentary diplomatic missions, elections observation missions, security and mediation initiatives across all ECOWAS Member States, Senator Snowe will also participate in a succeeding Policy Dialogue on the subject: “Democracy in West Africa: Electoral Integrity, Regional Governance, and Constitutional Order" on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, at the Nissan Lecture Theatre, St Antony's College, University of Oxford.

Senator Snowe welcomed the invitation with an expression that “These discussions come at a defining moment for the sub-region; as West Africa continues to confront democratic transitions, constitutional challenges, and growing concerns over political stability."

It cannot be overemphasized that his participation would reflect the fast-growing international recognition of the community Parliament in shaping policy discussions on democracy, governance, and regional cooperation.

10/07/2026

This is Leadership!

07/07/2026

Joint Statement by Sen. Edwin Melvin Snowe, Jr., and Sen. Amara M. Konneh on Recent Charges Brought Against Five Individuals in the Co***ne Bust at the Roberts International Airport in Liberia.

The seizure of approximately 237.6 kilograms of co***ne at Roberts International Airport underscores a grave threat to Liberia’s national security. It exposes serious concerns regarding the country’s rule of law, border security, and public safety.

We commend the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), the Liberia National Police (LNP), and all supporting Joint Security agencies for their coordinated efforts in intercepting this shipment before it could cause further harm to our communities and damage Liberia’s international reputation.

We also commend Inspector General of Police Gregory O.W. Coleman, the Liberia National Police, and the broader Joint Security Team for bringing charges against five individuals allegedly connected to the reported US$19.2 million co***ne trafficking case: Michael U.S. Browne, also known as Rahim or Raheem Bah; Paul J. King; Oscar Browne; Emmanuel Kpah; and Usman Ali. According to the Liberia National Police, these individuals have been linked to this serious criminal enterprise.

However, the circumstances surrounding this investigation raise troubling questions that deserve clear and credible answers.

According to information released by the authorities, two persons of interest, Oscar Browne and Paul J. King were outside Liberia when the investigation commenced and were subsequently declared suspects. At the same time, it has been alleged that Michael U.S. Browne and Emmanuel Kpah were present in Liberia during the early stages of the investigation yet the authorities told the world that naming “persons of interest” would compromise the investigation but made up to believe that they were in control of the situation. If this was accurate, it raises an obvious question: how were these suspects able to evade arrest?

The Liberian people deserve full transparency regarding whether these individuals were under surveillance, whether operational failures allowed them to escape, or whether other circumstances contributed to their departure from Liberia’s jurisdiction.

Simply put, drugs worth approximately US$19.2 million reportedly entered Liberia and were on the verge of being exported through the country’s only international airport. Yet, despite the magnitude of this case, no persons of interest that the authorities knew but could not name and off course no suspect appears to have been physically arrested by national security agencies, even though the Officer-in-Charge of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency publicly informed the nation that there were persons of interest in custody.

According to official statements, the only individual currently in custody who was sent to court yesterday is the suspect who voluntarily boarded a flight, returned to Liberia, and surrendered to national security authorities upon his arrival at Roberts International Airport.

If these are indeed the facts, they raise serious questions about the effectiveness of our security institutions and our commitment to combating transnational organized crime.

How is it possible that a co***ne shipment valued at US$19.2 million could be intercepted without a single suspect being apprehended by our security forces before leaving the country?

Are we truly serious about enforcing the law and expecting the international community to take Liberia seriously in the fight against organized crime?

Furthermore, while we acknowledge the efforts made thus far, the investigation must not end with those allegedly connected to the attempted exportation of the co***ne. Equal attention must now be devoted to uncovering the entire criminal network behind this operation.

Critical questions remain unanswered:
• Who financed the importation of these drugs?
• How did the co***ne enter Liberia by air, sea, or land?
• Where was it stored, concealed, or repackaged before being transported to the airport?
• Who coordinated the logistics of this operation?
• Which financial institutions or other entities, if any, were used to launder the proceeds?
• Who are the additional local and international collaborators?
• Were any public officials or state security personnel involved, either directly or indirectly?
* How did the investigation exonerate Emmanuel Zeon, (the drugs transporter)?
* ⁠How did the investigation exonerate Ruth Gbapaywhea, a screener at RIA who allowed suspicious package to pass for security clearance.

The Liberian people deserve answers to these questions.

Drug trafficking poses a direct threat to our youth, our families, our institutions, and our national security. Given the scale of this seizure and its apparent international dimensions, this matter demands a comprehensive, impartial, and evidence based investigation that follows every lead, regardless of where it may lead.

Accordingly, we call for an independent investigation conducted with the full cooperation and technical support of Liberia’s international partners to ensure that every individual responsible from financiers and importers to traffickers, facilitators, and any public officials who may have aided this criminal enterprise is identified, investigated, and prosecuted in accordance with the law.

The Liberian people deserve nothing less than the full truth, complete accountability, and justice.

We demand answers!

02/07/2026

STATEMENT BY SENATORS EDWIN MELVIN SNOWE JR. AND AMARA M. KONNEH ON THE PRESIDENTIAL DESIGNATION OF ILLICIT DRUGS AS A NATIONAL EMERGENCY

Monrovia, Liberia

July 2, 2026

We warmly welcome and commend the decision of His Excellency President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, announced at the Cabinet meeting of 2 July 2026, to designate illicit drugs and substance abuse as a national security threat and emergency in Liberia. This bold action reflects the gravity of the situation, and it is a vital step in confronting the alarming spread of narcotics that continues to endanger our communities and jeopardize the future of countless young Liberians.

This President’s declaration is critically important in light of the recent $19.2 million co***ne bust at Roberts International Airport (RIA). The Liberian Senate's public hearings, prompted by our communication, have revealed significant vulnerabilities in our national security infrastructure, border oversight, and intelligence operations.

Therefore, in the interest of public confidence and institutional credibility, we demand an independent, impartial, and transparent investigation because the people of Liberia have the right to know the truth. Official silence and inaction are unacceptable when our country’s reputation and internal security are at stake.

While we commend the Executive for recognizing this as a national emergency, we emphasize that such a declaration demands strong, coordinated action. This must begin with the $19 million co***ne investigation and the swift prosecution of all involved to ensure they face the full extent of the law. The ongoing leadership crisis and systemic failures within the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) must be urgently addressed through transparent, non-political vetting and the appointment of qualified professionals.

Furthermore, we note the importance of ensuring that our law enforcement and security agencies are adequately funded, professionally led, and equipped with modern tools and technologies necessary to detect, prevent, and disrupt illicit drug activities across all ports of entry and throughout the country.

In so doing, as Senators of the Republic, we reaffirm our commitment to working constructively with the Executive Branch, our colleagues in the Legislature, and Liberia’s international partners to support policies and initiatives that address all dimensions of the drug crisis.

We thank the President Pro Tempore and our colleagues for the non-partisan collaboration on this matter and their commitment to persistently exercising our constitutional oversight authority to hold accountable all financiers, facilitators, and internal accomplices involved in transnational drug rings under the law.

We call upon all Liberians—families, educators, religious institutions, community leaders, youth organizations, and civil society —to unite and wholeheartedly support the government’s comprehensive strategy, which must prioritize strict enforcement and decisive rehabilitation for victims of substance abuse.

Together, with unity of purpose and steadfast determination, we can overcome this challenge and build a safer, healthier, and more prosperous Liberia for present and future generations.

Signed:
Hon. Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr.
Senator, Bomi County

Hon. Amara M. Konneh
Senator, Gbarpolu County

30/06/2026

THE PEOPLE DEMAND ANSWERS: WHO IS THIS INVESTIGATION PROTECTING?

Sen. Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr.’s Statement on the floor of the Liberian Senate on the 19.1 million United States Dollars drugs seizure at the Roberts International Airport.

Madam President Pro Tempore, Distinguished Colleagues, on behalf of my co-author of the letter we have written to Plenary, Senator Amara M. Konneh of Gbarpolu County, I stand here not to make accusations. I stand here to demand answers. Answers that every Liberian citizen is entitled to receive. Answers that this Legislature is constitutionally obligated to demand. Answers that the joint security task force investigating the co***ne seizure at Roberts International Airport has had weeks to provide but has failed to deliver to anyone.

On Monday, June 8, 2026, over 19 million United States Dollars worth of co***ne was seized at the Roberts International Airport. The country was informed on Tuesday, June 9. Since then, the joint security task force assembled by the President to investigate this significant drug trafficking incident has failed to provide any concrete briefs to this Senate through the Defense, Security, and Intelligence Committee, of which we are members. They have met the committee only once. There has been no formal update beyond the leaked stories circulating on the radio, in newspapers, and on social media. There has been no official communication to this body.

What the task force has done is leak details of their own investigation to the public.

CCTV footage originating solely from within the investigation has circulated freely on social media. Selective details about persons of interest have been actively shared in online commentary. Evidence with genuine legal and evidentiary significance has been deliberately fed to bloggers and social media pundits, while the Legislature—the institution elected to provide oversight—remains in the dark.

Madam Pro-Temp and Distinguished Colleagues, that is unacceptable. And we want to know why it is happening.

Public reporting in newspapers—our sole source of information about this investigation—confirms that a witness submitted a formal statement to the Ministry of Justice on June 13, 2026, five days after the bust. That statement explicitly named a specific individual and provided a designated phone number linked to the cargo. Investigators have had that number for more than two weeks.

Public reporting confirms that tracing this number through the mobile money system reveals the identity of a man known to the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency as a suspected smuggler and trafficker. He is a former employee of Roberts International Airport, has a documented criminal history, and is already listed in the LDEA's database.

Public reporting confirms that CCTV footage from UBA Bank clearly shows the individual who made the cash deposit for this shipment. This individual is known to the LDEA, is a former RIA employee, and is already in the agency's records of smugglers.

Madam Pro-Temp, we have questions.

If the LDEA already knows these individuals, why have they not been publicly named as persons of interest in this investigation? Since the task force announced ten persons of interest at the start of this investigation, has a single one of those ten been elevated to the status of a named suspect? What investigative progress has been made since that initial announcement? If a witness statement was received on June 13 identifying suspects by name and number, did investigators follow those leads? If not, who decided not to follow them and why?

Who authorized the release of sensitive evidentiary material to the media and other commentators? It is crucial to determine if this was authorized at all. Investigators and prosecutors must recognize that circulating evidence publicly before trial risks inadmissibility in court. Ultimately, responsibility lies with those who allow this breach, as they jeopardize the case and threaten its integrity.

And we will ask the hardest question directly. Is someone on this task force protecting individuals connected to this investigation? Public reporting alleges a close personal relationship between a member of the investigation team and one of the individuals the evidence reportedly points to. If that allegation has any basis in fact, this Senate needs to know. The Liberian people need to know.

Madam Pro Temp, Senator Konneh, and I would like to state what the pattern we are observing indicates clearly. An investigation that refuses to brief the Legislature, declines to issue official public updates, and yet selectively leaks information to the media and other influencers is not conducting an investigation. It is waging a campaign—one aimed at shaping public perception while controlling what the public actually learns.

This is not justice. This is narrative management—and in a case this serious, such management constitutes obstruction.

This country cannot afford for this investigation to fail. Not because of who is involved. But because of what failure means. It means that Roberts International Airport, an important gateway
to this Republic, can be used to move nearly 240 kilograms of co***ne and the people responsible walk free because the investigators were too conflicted, too compromised, or too incompetent to follow the evidence.

We cannot allow incompetence or compromise to kill this investigation. We will not allow Liberia to be turned into a narco state on the watch of a task force that leaks evidence to bloggers and stonewalls the Legislature.

We are, therefore, calling on the Minister of Justice to appear before this body and provide a full accounting of this investigation. Every lead pursued. Every lead ignored. Every decision made about what information entered the public domain and who authorized it. The full composition of the task force and whether any conflicts of interest exist within it.

And if that briefing reveals that witness statements were received, leads were identified, and investigators chose to do nothing with them. This Legislature must call for the immediate replacement of this task force with an independent, qualified, and uncompromised investigation team that is unafraid to turn over every stone and unwilling to protect any sacred cow.

The people of Liberia are watching. They watched this bust happen. They watched the leaks start. They watched the social media circus while official silence continued. They are watching us now to see whether this institution will demand the accountability that they cannot demand for themselves.

Madam Pro-Temp, we intend to hold them accountable.

The floor has heard us. Let the Minister of Justice and the entire National Security Council hear the Senate next.

Thank you.

30/06/2026