Source: The Liberian Age, August 9, 1977

 

The Maryland Ritual Murders


Allen Yancy expelled from 
the House of Representatives

On August 8, 1977, a week after his arrest, Allen Yancy was expelled from the House of Representatives by unanimous vote. Prior to the vote President Tolbert had sent a letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Richard A. Henries – one of his strongest supports in the Liberian political arena - pointing out that Yancy was criminally involved in the Moses Tweh murder case and that he was convinced of the inconsistency of his continuing tenure as a member of the House, and therefore suggested that the House take ‘appropriate action’.

President Tolbert’s action may surprise and certainly can be considered inappropriate. Nobody is guilty before he/she is found guilty after a fair and impartial trial. However, one should also know that it was not the first time that Allen Yancy was involved in a murder case. Also during the Tubman Administration he was accused of the crime of murder and as one newspaper reported:

“(…) there were many other trials held in Harper over the years involving (him). We make special reference to the Robert Moulton case, in which he was arrested for the crime of murder; (…and) his arrest and trial for the crime of murder involving the late Gabriel Diggs, commonly called ‘Wah Toe’; and other cases in which he was involved.” (Sunday Express, May 21, 1978, p.1).

Allen Yancy had been indicted and tried a few years earlier, also in Harper (1967), but was never convicted, allegedly because of his protection by his cousin, President Tubman. Yancy was then ‘saved’ by the Supreme Court - presided over by Chief Justice A. Dash Wilson, who also came from Maryland County – which reversed the judgment of the lower court.

The First Harper Trial

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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