Former Liberian VP placed in prison ahead of drug trial

Liberia's former vice-president Jewel Howard-Taylor, wife of former rebel leader Charles Taylor, has been imprisoned prior to her trial for alleged involvement in a transnational narcotics trafficking network. The charges, which include unlicensed importation, sale, trading, and administration of drugs, come amid a government crackdown on drug trafficking following several major cocaine busts in recent months.

The largest bust, valued at US$317 million, involved the seizure of four tonnes of cocaine in July. Howard-Taylor, who served as vice-president from 2018 to 2024 and as a senator from 2006 to 2018, was arrested at Roberts International Airport near Monrovia and charged last Wednesday. Three others, two from Croatia and one from Ukraine, were also charged in the case in absentia.

Howard-Taylor's lawyers had requested she not be detained while awaiting trial due to her asthma, but the court denied this request. Accusations of government complicity in drug cases have been raised, with the opposition ANC party calling for a wider investigation that does not solely target opposition figures.