–EPS Preliminary Investigation Claims
The Executive Protection Service (EPS) is currently investigating allegation of attack on the Former Vice President of the Republic of Liberia, Jewel Howard Taylor, and has gathered no evidence so far to prove that the former VP was attacked by an unknown assailant in the Du-Port Road area as reported.
On Saturday, May 25, 2024, an alarming act of violence was said to have been committed against former Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor. As she was traveling through the Du-Port Road community in Paynesville, Montserrado County, her vehicle was allegedly subjected to a targeted attack by unknown assailants, resulting in the destruction of the vehicle’s rear windshield.
This assault, according to the office of the former Vice President, marks escalation in the challenges facing former Vice President Howard-Taylor, who has repeatedly expressed concerns about her security to the current administration. Despite her numerous requests for enhanced protection from the Executive Protection Service (EPS), her appeals have remained largely unaddressed. This incident is not only a direct threat to her personal safety but also a disturbing indication of the broader security challenges ordinary citizens in Liberia face daily.
“It is particularly distressing to note that since the new administration took over, there has been insufficient support in terms of security for former Vice President Howard-Taylor. No official or security vehicles have been provided, leaving her insufficiently protected. This raises serious concerns about the commitment to the safety of individuals who have served at the highest levels of government,” the office of the former VP stated.
However, in a release issued May 28, 2024, signed by EPS Director Sam Gaye, the EPS said preliminary investigation was unable to substantiate the claim of the targeted attack, as was reported in the media.
The investigation revealed that former Vice President Jewel Taylor was riding in a two-vehicle convoy when a sound came from one of the vehicle’s back windshields,causing minor damage.
There was no showing that a vehicle crashed into the former VP’s convoy, as is being insinuated in the media.
The area of the alleged incident was immediately searched and pedestrians and others in the neighborhood were interviewed; no one testified to seeing anyone throwing projectiles at the former VP’s vehicle.
The incident is still being investigated. From the investigation so far, there is a strong possibility that gravel from under the tire of another moving vehicle in the opposite lane may have hit the rear windshield of the vehicle. However, this hypothesis is inconclusive, but there is no evidence that the former Vice President was attacked as reported.
The Executive Protection Service (EPS) is mandated to provide protection services to the President, Vice President, their family members, and other VIPs. The EPS is interested in establishing the facts and circumstances regarding threats-related incidents and will not be drawn into political spin and unfounded allegations of targeted attacks to draw public attention and sympathy.
The EPS is currently providing services to the former Vice President with almost half a dozen well-trained agents and two police officers, and does not take lightly the security of its protectees.