The Asset Recovery and Property Retrieval Taskforce (AREPT) on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, enhanced its anti-corruption and asset recovery drive following a strategic engagement with Madam Kristen Schill, Supervisory Special Agent of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Transnational Anticorruption Partnership (TAP) Advisor at the U.S. Embassy in Dakar, Senegal.
The engagement represented a key step in expanding international cooperation consistent with AREPT’s mandate under Executive Order No. 145, which authorizes collaboration with global partners to trace, recover, and repatriate stolen public assets of the Republic of Liberia.
In welcoming Madam Schill, AREPT Chairman, Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin, provided an overview of the Taskforce’s mandate, operational scope, and recent achievements, emphasizing its resolve to ensure accountability for corruption-related crimes.
He disclosed that AREPT has unsealed three indictments involving over sixty individuals and is currently conducting forty additional investigations.
Chairman Martin described the meeting as both timely and strategic, noting that it strengthens AREPT’s ongoing efforts and establishes a solid framework for sustained international cooperation against corruption and financial crimes.
Madam Schill reaffirmed the commitment of the United States and other international anti-corruption institutions to collaborate closely with AREPT through intelligence sharing, technical assistance, and capacity-building initiatives, including specialized training for investigators.
She further indicated that U.S. agencies would support efforts to identify and investigate Liberian public assets illicitly held outside the country.
Chairman Martin welcomed the assurances and reiterated AREPT’s readiness to work closely with the FBI and partner institutions to translate these commitments into tangible outcomes, stressing that the recovery of stolen public assets—both domestically and internationally—remains central to the Taskforce’s mission.
The meeting, attended by the Chairman, Co-Chair, and two core members of the Taskforce, reflected growing international confidence in AREPT’s work and reinforced the critical role of cross-border collaboration in addressing complex corruption and asset recovery cases.
AREPT reaffirmed its commitment to executing its mandate with professionalism, integrity, and full respect for the rule of law, as it continues to strengthen Liberia’s capacity to recover stolen public assets wherever they may be located.
