Liberia: LIS Nabs Two with 8 Single Barrel Guns
Lidyson Balzar, 24, and Bih Balzar, 21, were apprehended with eight single barrel rifles in their possession.
... Near Ivorian Border
The Liberia Immigration Service assigned near the border with Ivory Coast on March 28, nabbed two men in possession of eight single barrel guns concealed in a bag.
The men, believed to be Ivorians, were nabbed at the Nanpea Checkpoint, which is situated near Karnplay, while allegedly on their way to the Ivory Coast.
It is not yet clear where the men were heading with these rifles, but the social media platform ‘Nimba TV’, which broke news, said the men were on their way to the Ivory Coast before they got arrested at the checkpoint near Karnplay from Sanniquellie. The single barrel guns were described as ‘brand new’.
The two suspects, identified as Lidyson Balzar, age 24 and Bih Balzar, age 21, were riding with a motorcyclist identified as Success Murphy.
The men are said to have been forwarded to Sanniquellie for further investigation, according to Nimba TV, but when the Liberia National Police was contacted, the Operation Officer, Bangadee, confirmed the incident, but said the case was still with the LIS.
The office of the LIS Nimba Detachment also confirmed the incident through their operations officer, Joshua, but he also said the case was still with the LIS Border Patrol Unit who performed the arrest.
One Commander Smith, in charge of the Upper Nimba Border Patrol Unit of LIS, under whose assignment area the two men and the guns were arrested, could not deny or confirm; rather he told this reporter to contact the office of the Commissioner of the Liberia Immigration Service.
The joint security is said to have forwarded the two men to Sanniquellie for further investigation.
Several arrests of single barrel guns have been made in Nimba, especially at the Ganta Border, but nothing has been heard of those cases since they were sent to court.