The Judge of the Civil Law Court “B”, Nancy Sammy, has ordered the arrest of the Inspector General of the Liberia National Police (LNP), Patrick Sudue. Col. Sudue’s arrest order was issued by the court on Thursday, August 18, 2022.
The Judge’s order is based on a complaint filed to the court by the Independent National Commission on Human Rights (INCHR), which alleged that the IG has failed to appear before it to establish the scale, magnitude and gravity of the situation relating to the human rights violation that occurred on July 26, 2022 when the CDC-COP attacked protesting students of the Student Unification Party (SUP).
In the complaint filed to the court, the INCHR stated that the IG had refused to honor their invitation to come before it to provide information about their role in the violence that took place on July 26 near the US embassy, so that the commission can advise the government and stakeholders.
The INCHR is backed by Article 6(I) of the Constitution to investigate complaints, and is clothed with the power to subpoena anyone accused of human rights violation, based upon complaints from an aggrieved party.
It can be recalled that some members of the Liberia National Police (LNP) were suspended for their failure to control the violence that erupted on July 26, which led to a member of the Student Unification Party (SUP) being tortured and brutally beaten.
The SUP member, according to reports, sustained injuries and has been in critical condition since the incident.
However, the LNP noted in its response to the INCHR invite that the Liberia National Police is the highest established security institution by law, thus they have an internal disciplinary review board responsible to investigate.
The LNP further noted that the Professional Standards Department is responsible to discipline based on proceedings within their jurisdiction and not the commission.