GBARNGA, BONG COUNTY — The Liberia National Police (LNP) in Gbarnga, Bong County, has forwarded four suspects to the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court for alleged theft of property and robbery following separate investigations.
The suspects have been identified as George M. Junvakpeh, Henry Sumo, Abraham Binda, and Michael Varney. Junvakpeh and Sumo are accused of theft of property, while Binda and Varney face allegations of robbery.
According to police records, Junvakpeh was arrested following a complaint that he stole a mineral stone from the premises of the a mining company in Panta District #4.
Speaking to reporters while being processed for court, Junvakpeh admitted taking the stone, explaining that he found it in the company’s yard, processed it, and obtained L$40,000.
He disclosed that he had already spent L$10,000 of the proceeds and appealed to the police and company officials to accept the remaining L$30,000 and forgive him.
Meanwhile, Sumo denied involvement in the alleged theft, arguing that his name was not included on the list of individuals initially linked to the mineral-related incident. He claimed that he was arrested after a video showing him and other individuals processing sand collected from the town surfaced during the police investigation.
In a separate incident, Abraham Binda and Michael Varney were forwarded to court following an investigation into the alleged theft of a Samsung mobile phone from a woman on Sunday night in the Old Iron Gate Community in Gbarnga.
Binda told reporters that he and his colleagues had gone to Club De Paris for entertainment on the night of the incident and that he was surprised by his arrest over the missing phone.
Although he admitted seeing Varney flee with the woman’s phone, Binda maintained that he had no knowledge of the alleged plan to steal it.
Michael Varney, however, disputed Binda’s account, claiming that the two had planned to steal the phone together. Binda further stated that he was arrested while attempting to escape. The two suspects reportedly returned the phone before being forwarded to court.
The cases have now been forwarded to the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court for further legal proceedings. The allegations against the suspects remain subject to judicial determination, as they remain presumed innocent until proven guilty.
