Karnplay – Medical staff at the John F. Kennedy Medical Center (JFK) in Monrovia have confirmed the death of Police Officer Elton W. Bahn following a physical altercation with fellow officer Jeremiah Tarkpor, 47, of the Police Support Unit (PSU) in Karnplay, Nimba County.
By Franklin Doloquee, [email protected]
The altercation, which reportedly stemmed from a dispute over food, led to Bahn’s untimely death on Friday morning at approximately 10 a.m.
What happened
PSU Officer Tarkpor, previously stationed in Zorgowee—a region home to Solway Mining Company operations—had been temporarily assigned to Karnplay Police Station to bolster manpower after aggrieved employees of the China Railway Seventh Group (CRSG), a company engaged in road construction, staged a protest. Following the protest, which police managed to control, a meal was prepared for the officers. According to information obtained by FrontPage Africa, a disagreement over the food allocation between Bahn and Tarkpor escalated into a physical fight.
Eyewitnesses’ Accounts
Eyewitnesses reported that the two officers fought for more than 30 minutes before being separated. Later, a second confrontation broke out, during which Officer Bahn was severely beaten. He was initially taken to the G.W. Harley Hospital in Sanniquellie, Nimba County, and subsequently transferred to JFK in Monrovia, where he was pronounced dead.
A Pattern of Fatal Conflicts Over Minor Disputes
Officer Bahn’s death marks at least the tenth fatality in Nimba County this year due to altercations over seemingly minor issues, such as food, cell phones, and small amounts of money. Earlier this year, a 34-year-old man was reportedly mobbed to death in Quikanuan village, near the Jackson Fiah Doe Hospital in Tappita, following a dispute over an evening meal. Additionally, a young girl was killed by Prince Sayemie and his wife in the Boe Community Junction in Ganta during an argument over a battery. In another incident in Ganta’s Blagay Town community, a man was beaten to death over five Liberian dollars during a funeral gathering.
This disturbing pattern of violence over minor disputes has raised concerns within the community, prompting calls for stronger measures to prevent such tragedies and promote peaceful conflict resolution.
