Who Killed Late President Tubman’s Son, John Hilary?

Residents of the Fiamah and Matadi community woke up on Wednesday, September 22, to the shocking news of the death of Mr. John Hilary Tubman, son of late President William V.S. Tubman in his home.

The scene of the incident, which is believed to have occurred around 1:30 a.m., suggests that there was a struggle between Mr. Tubman and an intruder, before he succumbed. 

His corpse was discovered later in the morning, lying in a pool of blood. 

In an interview with the niece of the deceased, Jocelia Tubman (also known as Lovetee), she explained that her uncle, Mr. Tubman, prior to his death, had a meeting scheduled that day (September 22) with a nephew of his. That morning, she woke up and decided to call her Uncle John, but his phone kept ringing with no answer. 

She, therefore, decided to call her cousin (Tubman’s nephew) to find out whether he had spoken to their Uncle John that morning.  “Later I received a call that uncle was still in bed, but I asked why he would still be in bed at this time. He knows that we planned to go somewhere today. did he forget?” she explained. 

Jocelia also narrated that, “because of that, my cousin and I went to find out what was going on but, to our dismay,” Mr. John H. Tubman was found lying dead in a pool of blood. 

According to family sources who inspected the scene, there was clearly a struggle between Mr. Tubman and an intruder.  She said her uncle was not sick and “it would have been better to be sick and die, instead of killing him. This is very bad and it is unacceptable.” 

The body of Mr. Tubman has been taken to the John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital, while the Liberia National Police conducts an investigation into the matter. 

Meanwhile, Alpha Barry, one of Mr. Tubman’s tenants, along with other friends who visited the scene, expressed serious dismay over the death of the deceased. According to Mr. Barry, a businessman who rents space from Mr. Tubman on Water Street, Monrovia, he was a very kindhearted man who had never had any problem with his tenants. 

“We are renting from this man in Waterside, we have known him for years. Why will people just kill this man for no reason,” he asked. 

John Hilary Tubman was born on July 1, 1945 -- the first son of Jocelia C. Rancy, that she had for President William V.S. Tubman. John Hilary’s younger brother by the same parents, William, predeceased him.  He is survived by several Tubman siblings including William V. S. Tubman, Jr. (Shad), and Wilhelmina (Coocoo) Tubman Tucker, widow of the late Secretary of Public works, Gabriel Tucker.