Alleged former Liberian rebel commander to stand trial for immigration fraud in Philadelphia, United States
(Geneva, 15 January 2025) – Laye Sekou Camara, also known by his noms de guerre “General K-1” and “General Dragon Master”, is alleged to have participated in Liberia’s brutal second civil war as a high-ranking member of the LURD (Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy), a rebel group which committed war crimes and atrocities resulting in the death and displacement of thousands of Liberians.
Arrested on 26 March 2022, in New York, Camara is charged with three counts of the use of a fraudulently obtained immigration document, and one count of possession of a fraudulently obtained immigration document. It is alleged that Camara lied to the U.S. immigration authorities about his role in the LURD rebel faction during the civil war in order to enter the country, and later to obtain a permanent residency card, or ‘green card,’ which he then used to obtain further official documents and licenses. His trial will start on 21 January 2025 and is expected to last three weeks. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Laye Sekou Camara will be the first LURD commander to stand trial in the US or elsewhere. While he is not charged with the crimes he committed in Liberia due to restrictions in the U.S. legal system, his trial could still provide a measure of justice for victims of his crimes as it is necessary for the prosecution to prove that he was a LURD rebel commander responsible for numerous extrajudicial killings of civilians, and for the use and recruitment of child soldiers. Witnesses, many of whom are victims themselves, will testify to these acts thereby putting on record the alleged role of Camara in Liberia’s civil wars.
Camara’s case is the third public criminal prosecution in Philadelphia related to the Liberian civil wars, following those of Mohammed Jabbateh aka “Jungle Jabbah”, former ULIMO commander, and Thomas Woewiyu, former NPFL spokesman and Minister of Defense. Civitas Maxima and its Liberia-based sister organization, the Global Justice and Research Project (GJRP), provided assistance to the U.S. authorities in these investigations.
Liberians continue to be unable to obtain justice at home
The Liberian civil wars (1989-1997 & 1999-2003) left more than 250,000 dead and hundreds of thousands of people displaced. A Truth and Reconciliation Commission was set up in 2005 to investigate the conflicts and released its final report in 2009. The TRC recommended, among other measures, the establishment of a Specialized Tribunal to facilitate criminal prosecutions for war crimes committed in Liberia. However no such court has yet been set up, and no one has ever been prosecuted in Liberia for crimes committed during the wars.
On 2 May 2024, the President of Liberia, Joseph Nyuma Boakai, signed Executive Order No. 131 establishing an Office with the specific mandate of setting up a Special War Crimes Court and a National Anti-Corruption Court. While this marks a positive step towards accountability for the crimes committed in Liberia, the Office remains severely underfunded and there is an apparent lack of political will to provide it with the necessary support. Liberians continue to be unable to obtain justice at home. For many years, they have had to resort to pursuing justice outside their borders.
The hope is that cases like these will help spur the Liberian government to dedicate sufficient resources and expertise to a court in Liberia that would finally allow the Liberian victims’ quest for justice to manifest in their own country, where they experienced so much suffering at the hands of the armed forces and rebel groups.
About Civitas Maxima
Civitas Maxima, based in Geneva (Switzerland), is an independent non-governmental organization that supports and assists forgotten victims of international crimes. Since its foundation and in close cooperation with its Liberian partner organization, the Global Justice and Research Project (GJRP), Civitas Maxima has been supporting victims of the Liberian civil wars in their quest for justice. Using, among other legal avenues, the principle of universal jurisdiction, Civitas Maxima has collaborated on several cases against alleged Liberian war criminals before courts in Europe and the United States, which led to criminal convictions in France, Switzerland and the United States.
Note to editors
The trial will take place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is scheduled to begin at 8.30 am on Tuesday, 21 January 2025. The trial will take place in courtroom 11-B before the Honorable Chad F. Kenney. The trial is open to the public and the court is located at:
James A. Byrne U.S. Courthouse
601 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Civitas Maxima with a team of pro-bono help will be attending the trial every day. We will publish summaries of the trial on our website. Once the trial is complete, Civitas Maxima will publish a full report of the trial.
For more information, please see our Q&A.
Contact information
Isabelle Tallec, Communications Manager
comms@civitas-maxima.org
+33 6 42 14 70 68 ｜@Civitas_Maxima.
