By: Melvin Flomo
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Monrovia, Liberia – The National Executive Council of the CDC-Council of Patriots (CDC-COP) has submitted a formal petition to the Independent National Commission on Human Rights (INCHR) and the Ministry of Justice, expressing deep alarm over the growing wave of mysterious deaths and alleged ritualistic killings in Liberia.
According to the CDC-COP, Liberia is in the grip of a human rights crisis, with at least 638 reported cases of unexplained deaths, ritual killings, and police brutality recorded in the past 16 months—none of which have resulted in meaningful justice. The group warns that this pattern of impunity threatens national security, undermines rule of law, and erodes public trust in state institutions.
At the center of the group’s petition is a strong demand for the immediate recusal and criminal investigation of Mr. Elijah Rufus, Commissioner General of the Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), over his alleged connection to two high-profile deaths: that of Mayoungor Keleko, a 45-year-old woman found mutilated in Lofa County on December 31, 2024, and Yakpawolo Moisemai, the teenage suspect in her murder who later died under suspicious circumstances while in police custody.
The CDC-COP states that Yakpawolo, believed to be an operative of Commissioner Rufus and reportedly his nephew, was poised to confess details about Keleko’s killing but died before his statement could be recorded. Despite being kept in isolation, he was discovered dead—allegedly by suicide. However, an autopsy released by the Ministry of Justice on May 26, 2025, ruled his death as unnatural and consistent with homicide.
The group further alleges that Mr. Rufus who is said to have changed his surname from "Moisemai" to conceal familial ties offered the deceased suspect’s family $20,000 in hush money to avoid an autopsy and pushed for a quiet burial. The bribe was reportedly rejected by both the family and the Duwoigomai Community’s Citizens Action Committee. Moreover, CDC-COP accuses Internal Affairs Minister Francis Nyumalin of shielding his nephew, Mr. Rufus, from accountability by misleading President Joseph Boakai on the matter.
"The autopsy findings, combined with Mr. Rufus’s unlawful interference, constitute a clear conflict of interest," the group stated. "Liberians cannot accept a system where officials protect their own while the citizens bury their loved ones without answers."
CDC-COP’s Demands:
The immediate recusal of Commissioner General Elijah Rufus from his position;
A full, independent, and impartial investigation into his alleged role in the deaths of Keleko and Moisemai;
The immediate arrest and prosecution of the six Liberia National Police officers who were on duty the night Moisemai died in custody;
A call to civil society, international partners, and all justice-seeking Liberians to join the campaign for accountability.
"The Liberian people cannot remain silent while the powerful use their influence to bury the truth," CDC-COP concluded. "Justice for Keleko. Justice for Moisemai. Justice for Liberia."
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