Liberian Ex-President's Son Charged With Additional Acts Of TortureU.S. Immigration and Customs EnforcementWashington, DC September 6, 2007 Victims Were Allegedly Burned With An Iron, Severely Beaten, Stabbed, Shocked A federal Grand Jury in Miami today charged Roy Belfast Jr. in a superseding indictment with additional crimes of torture occurring in Liberia between 1999 to 2003, Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney R. Alexander Acosta of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Assistant Director Joseph Billy Jr. for the Counterterrorism Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced today. Roy M. Belfast Jr., 30, aka Chuckie Taylor, aka Charles Taylor, Jr., aka Charles Taylor II, aka Charles McArther Emmanuel was previously charged on December 6, 2006, with one count of torture, one count of conspiracy to torture, and one count of using a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. Trial is currently set for January 8, 2008. The superseding indictment, which incorporates the conduct charged in the prior indictment, includes five counts of torture, one count of conspiracy to torture, one count of using a firearm during the commission of a violent crime, and one count of conspiracy to use a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. The defendant, who was born in the United States, is the son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, and is alleged to have been a commander of an armed security force in Liberia during his father’s administration. According to the superseding indictment, the defendant committed torture and caused and aided and abetted others to commit torture by, among other things, burning certain victims with molten plastic, lit cigarettes, candle wax and an iron; severely beating victims with firearms; cutting and stabbing certain victims; and shocking certain victims with an electric device. In March 2006, ICE agents initiated an investigation of Taylor for allegedly torturing several individuals while commander of the Liberian Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) from 1997-2003. Agents conducted domestic and international investigations in order to identify, locate, and interview the individuals allegedly tortured by Taylor. The defendant is currently in federal custody on the pending indictment. On September 15, 2006, the defendant pleaded guilty to a criminal charge of passport fraud, and on December 7, 2006, he was sentenced to 11 months in prison. The indictment includes charges with maximum penalties ranging up to life in prison. An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty at trial beyond a reasonable doubt. The joint investigation is being conducted by ICE and the FBI with close assistance from the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service investigators. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Rochlin and Caroline Heck Miller of the Southern District of Florida, and Trial Attorney John Cox of the Criminal Division. Identifying and removing persecutors and human rights violators from the United States is one of ICE’s top enforcement programs. To achieve this goal, ICE created the Human Rights Violators Unit, with a specific mandate to deny safe haven to human rights violators by bringing to bear a full range of investigative techniques and legal authorities to identify, locate, investigate and remove them from the United States. To date, ICE has initiated nationwide over 800 human rights related investigations or removal cases from over 85 countries. ICE encourages the public to come forward with any information they may have regarding human rights abusers living in the United States. Nationwide, anonymous tips may be reported at 1-866-DHS-2ICE (1-866-347-2423). Contact: |
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