WPA Strongly Condemns Unlawful Exposure of Whistleblower
WPA Strongly Condemns Unlawful Disclosure of Protected Identities in the $19.2 Million RIA Cocaine Seizure Investigation; Calls on the Liberia National Police and Ministry of Justice to Prosecute Violators of the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2021!
Thursday, June 18, 2026
MONROVIA – The Witness Protection Agency (WPA) hereby issues this statement condemning the reckless, unlawful, and dangerous conduct of media institutions and private individuals who have been disclosing, broadcasting, and circulating the identities of whistleblowers, witnesses, and cooperating persons connected to the joint security investigation into the seizure of approximately 237.6 kilograms of cocaine valued at US$19.2 million at Roberts International Airport (RIA). WPA sees this conduct not as a matter of editorial judgment or expression of rights but as a criminal offense under section 11(d) & (e) of the Whistleblower Act of 2021 and other applicable laws of the Republic of Liberia, and warrants prosecution to the fullest extent of the law. Section 11 (d) and (e) of the Whistleblower Act of 2021 provides that “a person or entity who undertakes an investigation in respect of a protected disclosure and in the course of that investigation conceals or suppresses evidence commits an offence; which offence shall be equivalent to a second-degree felony punishable by a prison term of not less than five years, and person to whom a disclosure is made who fails to keep confidential the disclosure, commits an offense equivalent to second degree felony and punishable consistent with Section 11 (d) of the Act”.
The June 8, 2026, major cocaine seizure, conducted by the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), joint security and international partners, uncovered a large shipment of cocaine concealed in cargo bound for Heathrow Airport, London. The Joint Security Investigators have intentionally withheld the identities of cooperating persons from the public for the singular purpose of gathering further intelligence, securing additional arrests, and dismantling the broader transnational trafficking network. The integrity of this investigation and the very lives of those cooperating with it depend entirely on the strict confidentiality of those identities. It is therefore with grave alarm that the WPA has observed some media institutions, online platforms, and private individuals actively and recklessly exposing those identities to the public.
Pursuant to Section 10(c) of the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2021, a person who receives a disclosure is imposed a direct and immediate obligation to keep it in a manner that clearly protects the confidentiality of both its content and the identity of the person making it. This obligation subsists for as long as the matter remains under investigation. It is precisely this foundational duty of confidentiality that the media institutions and individuals have so blatantly violated. Building on this, Section 8(a) makes it unlawful to interfere with any person's right to make a protected disclosure, while Section 8(b) legally obligates every person who receives a disclosure to protect the disclosing person's identity.
Importantly, the legal protection afforded in this matter does not end with whistleblower status. Individuals who provide information to investigators in a criminal investigation may also become witnesses whose testimony or cooperation is necessary for prosecution. As such, the unauthorized disclosure of their identities requires the protections of the Witness Protection Agency. Beyond domestic law, these exposures also violate Article 32 (2a) of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), which requires Member states to establish procedures for the physical protection of such persons, such as, to the extent necessary and feasible, relocating them and permitting, where appropriate, non-disclosure or limitations on the disclosure of information concerning the identity and whereabouts of such persons the protection of both witnesses and reporting persons against retaliation, intimidation, and harm.
The operational consequences of these disclosures are devastating and irreversible, with a negative impact on the fight for justice. When cooperating persons are publicly exposed, whistleblowers and/or witnesses withdraw from active cooperation, ongoing investigations collapse, suspects escape prosecution, and future informants choose silence over cooperation. Public exposures of whistleblowers and witnesses egregiously affect the accountability chain and increase the culture of impunity (Business As Usual)! Beyond this immediate operational damage, the conduct directly undermines the President's publicly stated commitment to combating drug trafficking and corruption and signals to Liberia's international partners that Liberia cannot protect those who assist its law enforcement efforts. The persons responsible for such reckless disclosure cannot claim to be performing a public service or acting in the public interest while at the same time violating existing laws. WPA believes media institutions and individuals engaging in such acts are serving the interests of drug traffickers and criminal cartels over the interests of the Liberian State and its people.
In light of the foregoing, the WPA hereby issues this formal directive, effective immediately, calling on the Liberia National Police and the Ministry of Justice to cite for questioning all media institutions, online platforms, bloggers, and private individuals who engage in publishing, broadcasting, or circulating the identity of all protected persons ( Whistleblowers) in the 19.2 million drugs trafficking case and all future investigations of a similar nature.
The Witness Protection Agency was established by an act of the National Legislature in August 2022 as an autonomous agency of the Executive Branch of Government of Liberia. The Agency has the responsibility to administer the Witness Protection Programs in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC).
WPA commits to the protection of witnesses and whistleblowers against threats, intimidation, political harm, and retaliatory actions within and across the borders of Liberia.
THE END
Abraham R. Sirleaf
Acting Asst. Manager for Public Affairs
MEDIA CONTACT
Witness Protection Agency
Sekou Toure Ave., Mamba Point, Monrovia, Liberia
Tel: +231 770929206/0886876534
Email: witnessprotectionagency@wpa.gov.lr; info@wpa.gov.lr
Website: www.wpa.gov.lr