Amid reports that the Acting Secretary General of the opposition People’s Liberation Party (PLP), David Beyan was shot by unknown masked men, the Liberia National Police (LNP) has termed the reports as erroneous, while threatening to prosecute the wounded man for what police authorities call possession of illegal firearm.
Police say contrary to widely circulated reports that the PLP’s Acting SG was shot by unknown gunmen allegedly riding on motorcycle, Beyan rather accidentally shot himself in his vehicle.
Police chief Patrick Sudue told state-radio last week that Beyan accidentally shot himself, and falsely reported that he was on Friday, September 24, 2021 at about 3:00 PM, shot by men wearing masks, while returning to Monrovia from Kakata, Margibi County, where he said he had gone to attend party functions and family meeting.
He narrated that while on his way to his Soul Clinic residence in Paynesville, he noticed two motorcycles ferrying four passengers tailing his vehicle from around Mount Barclay, outside Monrovia.
Beyan insinuated that in the middle of the Parker Paint Road, one of the riders reportedly crossed in front of his vehicle with speed, adding that he later disembarked the vehicle in an attempt to compel the biker to remove his bike, indicating that at that juncture, he was overpowered by the men and was shot in his left thigh.
But Police IG Sudue countered Beyan’s narrations, terming same as being untrue.
The police boss intoned that an LNP investigation launched into the alleged shooting incident involving Beyan, later proved that the PLP’s Acting SG claims were untrue.
Sudue explained that upon receiving information that the PLP’s Acting SG was shot, the LNP immediately approached him at the JFK Memorial Medical Center, in Sinkor, where he was seeking medical treatment at the time.
“When we got there, and requested to talk to him, the doctors said they were doing some work on him so we left, but later again, we went to his residence on Monday and he told us that he needed to rest and we should go back on Wednesday, we went again and he told us we should go back on Tuesday,” the Police chief added.
Sudue said after they realized that Mr. Beyan was giving them what he termed as “run around,” they prayed the court for both a search and seizure warrant and a writ of subpoena which was used to obtain his medical report, with the LNP boss adding that it was later discovered that Beyan had honestly narrated to the doctor at the JFK Hospital how he shot himself in his car while discharging his weapon.
“After we got that, we proceeded to Mr. Beyan’s house, and when we got there we saw six vehicles parked in the yard and we asked them to open all those vehicles and when we started searching we saw the perforation of the bullet on his car seat. When we asked him, Mr. Beyan was trying to make up another fake story and I said look this is what happened, we have subpoenaed your medical record and from there he confessed and agreed to cooperate with us,” Police IG Sudue stated
