A shipment of nine cartons from Malaysia, declared as botanical powder, coffee, and candy, weighing 202.5 kilograms, had triggered alarm over suspected cocaine and heroin. The Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) initially reported that the shipment tested positive for narcotics during a field screening at a DHL warehouse in Monrovia. However, subsequent confirmatory testing at LDEA headquarters has come back negative.
The chain of events began with an act of goodwill by Martha Jallah, a 39-year-old Liberian woman, who was approached by an acquaintance, Solange, an Ivorian national, to help clear the shipment on behalf of Tan Makado, a 60-year-old Ivorian national based in Abidjan. Jallah went to the DHL warehouse to clear the cartons, which were consigned to Tan Gouet Gerard at an address on Fiamah Coleman Avenue, Monrovia.
The LDEA's RIA Detachment intervened, taking the cartons into custody for testing. Initial on-site screening allegedly showed the material tested positive for cocaine and heroin, prompting further testing at LDEA headquarters. The confirmatory testing has now cleared the shipment of narcotics, and authorities suspect the shipment contained dietary and herbal supplements manufactured in Malaysia.
Photographs of the shipment reviewed by FrontPage Africa show the cartons packed with ordinary consumer wellness products, including boxes of "Aceguard" and "Rocenta," marketed under the "Dynace" brand by Malaysia-based Dynace Global, and foil pouches of "Triple Root Coffee." These products are promoted as immune-support and botanical supplements containing plant stem cells and herbal extracts.
The individuals named in connection with the shipment, including Jallah and Makado, appear to have been cleared of any wrongdoing related to narcotics trafficking, pending any further findings from LDEA. A separate document obtained by FrontPage Africa, a Laissez-Passer issued by police in Danané, Côte d'Ivoire, records travel clearance for an Ivorian national identified as "Tan Makado A."
This episode unfolds against the backdrop of a year marked by major narcotics interceptions in Liberia, which has become a transit hub for cocaine moving from South America toward European and Middle Eastern markets. Recent seizures include 198 compressed plates of cocaine hidden in six cargo boxes at Roberts International Airport, valued at an estimated US$19.2 million, and nearly four tonnes of cocaine, worth an estimated $317 million.
Civil society groups have flagged Liberia's growing role as a transit hub for cocaine and criticized a pattern in which high-profile seizures generate headlines while prosecutions stall. This incident highlights the risk of publicizing preliminary results before laboratory confirmation and the impact on individuals named in connection with the shipment.
Key points
- The shipment of herbal supplements from Malaysia has been cleared of narcotics, and those named in connection with the cargo appear to have been exonerated.
- The incident highlights the risk of publicizing preliminary results before laboratory confirmation.
- Liberia has become a significant transit hub for cocaine moving from South America to European and Middle Eastern markets.
