Monrovia – After he was charged and forwarded to court for allegedly sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl, Superintendent Joseph Jallah of the motor vehicle section of the Liberia National Police has been suspended by the Liberia National Police.
Report by Bettie K. Johnson-Mbayo, [email protected]
The suspension letter dated December 21, 2018 in possession of FPA stated that the LNP “resolved to suspend him for time indefinite off-the-job with one-third of his gross salary.”
The alleged act contravenes chapter VI section 2.2 and chapter II sections 1.21 of the new police duty manual captioned “Prohibited Conduct”.
The LNP requested Jallah to turn over all government properties including badges, uniform, ID cards and boots to the Human Resource Management Division, pending the outcome of the case.
Officer Jallah is now out of the Monrovia Central Prison after he spent five nights incarcerated for reportedly sexually abusing the minor.
The officer was arrested following a complaint filed by the victim’s mother identified as Cece on November 21, 2018, who told investigators that her daughter (the victim) informed her that the officer squeezed her butt and breast.
The complainant said her daughter was told by the officer that “I will have sex with her till her genital gets swollen”.
The victim, according to report, had gone to buy bread when the officer called her and said he had something to tell her at which time he gave her US$10.00 and told her he wanted to have sex with her.
According to the police charge sheet, when the statement was immediately made by officer Jallah the girl then returned the money to him. But he allegedly began offensively touching her.
Her friend, one of the witnesses, confirmed how in her presence officer Jallah offensively touched the victim and told her that “I will have sex with her till her genital gets swollen.”
The witness told investigators that it occurred for the second time when the victim was narrating her first encounter with the officer.
Officer Jallah denied the incident and also denied encountering the victim, but confirmed that he went to the victim’s mother house on the night the incident allegedly occurred.
Investigators of the police established that the accusation by the victim is consistent and that the victim and officer Jallah came in contact on the said date.
The act by officer Jallah is in violation of chapter 14.77(a) of the law of Liberia which states that the actor knows that the contact is offensive to the other person when such person is not a voluntary social companion or the other person is less than twenty-one years of age and the actor is at least five years older than the other person.
The case is currently before Criminal Court “E” awaiting trial while the officer faces suspension. Meanwhile, the LNP has ordered him to desist from identifying himself with the organization while undergoing suspension to avoid future embarrassment.