Former Liberian Rebel General Sentenced to Over Four Years in Prison for Concealing Serious Human Rights Violations to Fraudulently Obtain Immigration Status in the United States

Laye Sekou Camara, 47, was sentenced today to 57 months in prison after pleading guilty to four counts of visa fraud.

"The defendant, who was a member of a Liberian rebel group, engaged in the extrajudicial killing of civilians and ordered a mortar attack which struck the U.S. Embassy compound in Monrovia, Liberia, before traveling to the United States and making false statements to obtain lawful permanent residence," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department's Criminal Division. "Human rights violators are not welcome in the United States, and the Criminal Division is committed to holding accountable those who attempt to conceal their crimes and live freely without consequence in the United States."

"The defendant was a notorious LURD commander, brutal even by the standards of the Second Liberian Civil War, and he lied about his past to build a new life in the United States," said U.S. Attorney David Metcalf for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. "Today's sentence holds him responsible for his immigration fraud and officially ends his efforts to avoid accountability for his horrific crimes."

According to court records, in 2010, Camara, also known as "general K-1" and "general Dragon Master," entered the United States pursuant to an immigrant visa and later obtained Lawful Permanent Resident status and a green card by falsely stating on immigration forms that he had never participated in extrajudicial killings or other acts of violence; had never been involved with a paramilitary unit, rebel group, or guerilla group; and had never engaged in the recruitment or use of child soldiers.

At a preliminary sentencing hearing held on Jan. 23, nine Liberian witnesses described how Camara used his position of power in the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) rebel group to terrorize civilians, committing extrajudicial killings and other atrocities. One farmer in Lofa County, Liberia, described how "K-1 and his boys surrounded the town, . . . [and] . . . [t]hose who refused to be arrested, those who resisted, they were killed." Another witness recounted how Camara used a handgun to kill at close range a pregnant woman and her 13-year-old son after the woman objected to LURD's recruitment of her son. Other witnesses described how LURD rebels - and Camara specifically - fired on and killed civilians who were trying to obtain food. Camara also ordered a "mortar crew" under his command to attack central Monrovia, striking the U.S. Embassy compound, resulting in the death of a U.S. embassy employee - a Liberian guard - and other civilians. Other witnesses testified about Camara's tactics to humiliate and terrorize civilians, including through mutilation of his victims. In one instance, a witness described how Camara tied a man's hands behind his back and "cut off his right ear," when the man continued to resist.

HSI Philadelphia investigated the case, with valuable assistance from the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office and the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service at the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia. The Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC) supported the case. Established in 2009 and led by HSI, the HRVWCC uses a whole of government approach to further efforts to identify, locate, and prosecute human rights abusers in the United States, including those who are known or suspected to have participated in persecution, war crimes, genocide, torture, extrajudicial killings, female genital mutilation, and the use or recruitment of child soldiers.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Linwood C. Wright, Kelly Harrell, and Patrick Brown of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorney Chelsea Schinnour of the Criminal Division's Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case.

Members of the public who have information about former human rights violators in the United States are urged to contact U.S. law enforcement through the HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE (1-866-347-2423) or internationally at 001-1802-872-6199. They can also email [email protected] or complete its online tip form at https://www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp.