The investigation into the high-profiled killing of Rev. William R. Tolbert, III is pointing the Hot Pepper in many directions, but to establish the motive in each of the directions pointed seems to be an uphill venture.
The death could be blamed on several factors, but the primary of them all lean squarely toward the Tolbert family itself.
Since the assassination of Rev. William Richard Tolbert Jr. on April 12, 1980 at the age of 66, through a coup d’etat, the Tolbert family has been divided into several factions as to who inherits the late President’s estate.
After the People’s Redemption Council (PRC), led by Master Sergeant, Samuel K. Doe, succeeded in overthrowing the Tolbert regime, the properties of all senior members of the regime, including that of the Tolberts, were seized.
The Tolbert family would split straight in the middle as to whom inherits the Tolbert vast estate: the late Rev. William Richard Tolbert, III, whose death is under investigation, and his sister Christine Tolbert Norman, who died four months ago after battling cancer for ten years, representing the legitimate children, and Joseph Tolbert and Blama Tolbert, representing the illegitimate children.
During the era of insecurity, the estate, which includes Mesurado Compound, sitting on four acres of land, the Tolbert farm in Belafana, Bong County, and several others were being managed by the so-called illegitimate son, Blama Tolbert. Blama would report proceeds of the estate to his elder brothers and sisters and then there was no query about inheritance.
Once the dust settled and the Tolberts regained their footing back into the country, they plotted to throw Blama Tolbert and Joseph Tolbert out of the Mesurado Compound on ground that they were not the legal children of the late President Tolbert.
This bitterness almost led to a bloodbath early one morning when Blama Tolbert (a trained law enforcement officer) was being forcefully thrown out of the compound by a team of armed police officers brought on the compound by Rev. William R. Tolbert, III. Being well-armed and in battle readiness, Blama Tolbert stood his ground, which saw the intervention of Fumba Sirleaf (the then NSA Director) and Chris Massaquoi (the then Police Director), preventing the possible bloodbath.
Blama and Joseph Tolbert would be taken to court to be denied their share of Tolbert’s estate. They would in turn hire the services of Cllr. Musa Dean (the current Justice Minister). The court case would draw more bad blood among the Tolbert children, when the two unfortunate brothers, representing the bash of illegitimate children, were being physiologically and emotionally torn apart.
Many days and night the overly brave Blama Tolbert, a trained security man with the means and motive, toyed with the idea of getting rid of his brother and sister, but as providence would have it left for the states. During this era of family fight, Rev. William Tolbert and Blama Tolbert lived in the same Mesurado Compound.
On November 1, 2021 the driver of the late Rev. William Richard Tolbert, III had an early encounter with his boss and came early to fetch him for his meetings. When he approached the Mesurado Compound apartment on Bushrod Island, after finding his boss in a pool of blood he sounded the alarm.
There was no breaking and entering into the compound, and the crime was committed in the bedroom; so, most likely, the person who committed the gruesome murder was familiar to Rev. Tolbert, who may have let him in as his guest or visitor.
The crime scene, which was contaminated by the Tolbert family who did not wait for the police after seeing their loved one in a pool of blood, probably did not leave any clue for the police forensic team to go by.
According to the Hot Pepper’s investigation, a domestic worker of Rev. Tolbert who has a copy of the spare key was called and the apartment doors opened.
According to a highly-placed police source, one Siafa Tolbert, the son of Adolphus Benedict Tolbert and a nephew of Rev. William R. Tolbert, III, is being investigated as the primary suspect. According to the Hot Pepper source, it was Siafa Tolbert who pointed out the whereabouts of the apartment keys. Siafa lives in the same apartment building as Rev. Tolbert.
When this medium spoke to two of the Tolbert family members, they argued bitterly that Siafa Tolbert could not have committed such an act. They said that, even though Rev. Tolbert was 68 years old, he was 6’3″ tall and almost 300lb, and a smaller and harmless Siafa Tolbert, whom they claimed could not hurt a fly, wound never have committed such a gruesome murder. Unfortunately for the family members who were desperately trying to prove Siafa’s innocence, a highly-placed security officer said that Siafa Tolbert had a motive because he and Rev. Tolbert were in confusion. Again, the members of the Tolbert family spoken to confirmed the family fight over the estate, but flatly denied any such confusion between Siafa Tolbert and the late Rev. William Tolbert, III.