The Deadly, Unlicensed Nigerian Gold Mine

July 16, 2026

Top: A drone picture shows countless pits Deep Gold Incorporated abandoned and a portion of the forest stripped of vegetation in Gmarkemkpo, Sinoe County. The DayLight/Samuel Jabba

By Samuel Jabba and Myer Saydi

GMARKEMKPO, Sinoe County – On a Friday morning last year, Peter Togba went mining in an abandoned pit. Suddenly, he tripped and fell into the pit, and with no one else there to rescue him, he drowned. He had just turned 20.

Togba’s body was recovered the same day. Townspeople broke tradition and buried him in the town’s graveyard.

“They called me, saying, ‘Your son drowned’. How he even got here, I don’t know,” said James Togba, the victim’s father.

Togba was one of three people who have died at this mine in Gmarkemkpo, a town in Sinoe County’s Dugbe River District. The two other victims were an unnamed 10-year-old girl and a 30-something-year-old unidentified miner.

Deep Gold Incorporated Liberia, a Nigerian-owned company, has run the gold mine for over three years, having arrived here in March 2024. However, a DayLight investigation found that several people died at the gold mine; its owners have no license, and it pollutes a much-needed watercourse. It hollows out the community, has dug up an old land dispute in the region, and pays thousands to locals and community leaders to operate.

Deep Mining was established in 2023 by four Nigerian men: Olatunji and Adeyemi Odebunmi have 30 percent shares each, while Aderonke and Adediran Taiwo have 20 percent each.

Not much is known about the Taiwos in the region. However, the Odebunmis are all too familiar. Two other Odebunmis—Timothy and Samson—co-own Iroko Timber and Logging Corporation, an illegitimate logging company that operated in the Central Dugbe River Community Forest. It cut more logs than they could sell, leaving behind broken promises and unpaid benefits.

In March 2023, Deep Gold came to Gmarkemkpo, according to townspeople and company workers. One worker—we will call John Moses—said he had worked with the company in Grand Kru in 2019.

“For me, I am doing a lot of work here, but they hired me as a mechanic,” Moses said. His story was confirmed by James Jallah, the general manager, known locally as the black manager to distinguish him from the Chinese or other non-negro workers.

This means that Sinoe was not the first location of Deep Gold’s illegal activities, since official records show it has never had a license in the southeast. Notably, Deep Gold did not exist in 2019.

Payouts

Deep Gold’s footprints are all over Gmarkemkpo. There is a hilltop school, three hand pumps, and the road from Kabada through Gmarkemkpo to Pojeakpo. A document shows Deep Gold paid US$5,000 on November 18 last year for a town hall construction.

A Deep Gold earthmover at work in Gmarkemkpo. The DayLight/Myer Saydi

There are big payouts to county and community leaders, documents show. Deep Gold provides L$35,000 each month to 13 elders, according to Jallah, Augustine Wleh, General Town Chief and Acting Clan Chief, confirmed. One receipt shows a US$1,400 and L$210,000 payment to the Patty Gmarkemkpo’s clan.

“The money they are giving the elders is small. We want L$100,000,” said Wleh, sitting in his office wielding a gavel, a Liberian flag in the background.

Moreover, Deep Gold provides jobs for people in the region, including at least a government official. Sorrie Sackor, the Commissioner for the Gmarkempko Township, was suspended in May for alleged conflict of interest involving Deep Gold.

“This act is against the organic law of this nation,” the letter reads. Sackor denies any wrongdoing, though Jallah and Jericho Tarpeh, Deep Gold’s PRO, confirmed his employment. One document shows that Sackor witnessed a rental payment as HR manager after his suspension.

It is unclear how much minerals Deep Gold extracted from Gmarkempko since it operated in other areas.

Bartee Togba, community liaison officer, hinted at a success story. He manages the Central Dugbe River Community Forest, where the Odebunmis—the family of Deep Gold’s co-owners—operated.

“If you are seeing us wanting to renew the MoU, it means we’re one way or the other satisfied with the proceeds that came out of our operations,” he told The DayLight.

Nevertheless, Deep Gold operations are anything but open, even for a remote community. There are no signboards, and the workers have no ID cards. Three Chinese workers hid inside a camphouse, while another left on a motorbike after spotting reporters.

Emmanuel Barclay, Gmarkemkpo’s youth president, claimed that he was invited at almost nine o’clock at night to sign an MoU between the community and the company. At first, he refused because he had an issue with some of the terms of the draft. Following a dispute with the elders, he backed down.

“I told Mr. Sackor that there were some things in the MoU that were not to be there. However, some youth on the board said we should forget it and sign the document. So, we went and signed it,” Barclay said.

Open pits

Deep Gold kept Peter Togba’s and the unnamed girl’s deaths a secret. Like Peter Togba, she met her untimely death after falling into a huge mining pit.

Several abandoned, water-filled pits hollow out and nearly encircle Gmarkemkpo, extending close to residential homes. Drone footage shows that large sections of cleared green vegetation

Barclay said the company left the pits open to give local people an opportunity to mine, aware of the danger it poses.

Drone picture shows deadly giant-sized mining pits in Gmarkemkpo, Sinoe County, where two people died. The DayLight/ Samuel Jabba

Jallah denies knowledge of Peter Togba and the unnamed child’s deaths. He said Deep Gold did not restore the area because it was commonplace for companies to abandon mining pits. Later in the interview, he said it was not his company’s policy to reclaim the land while operating.

However, Jallah acknowledges the unidentified worker’s fatal fall. He explained that the doomed worker had come to Gmarkemkpo with Deep Gold from Grand Kru County. He, along with a colleague, was allegedly making away with a barrel of fuel and fell to his death in a canal. They laid him to rest on the riverbanks—this time—in keeping with the tradition. Drowning victims in the countryside are buried outside towns and villages to cleanse the town of bad luck.

On the legality issue, Jallah said the Ministry of Mines and Energy was processing Deep Gold’s license. Bartee Togba, the liaison officer, and Sackor, the suspended HR manager, had said the same thing.

But the facts contradict their claims. Deep Mining has no current applications and has never applied for a license in Sinoe, official records show. Its only two applications were for diamond exploration in Gbarpolu and an undisclosed location in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

In all, the Ministry of Mines and Energy records show that Deep Gold has never had a license anywhere in southeastern Liberia. Its three mining licenses for Grand Cape Mount and Gbarpolu are inactive. All three mining licenses were terminated in 2024 because it failed to file its environmental permits, quarterly reports, and other required documents. The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative only published its licenses in the northwest, further proof that none exist in the southeast.

Through its operations, Deep Gold evaded US$160,100 in mining and environmental licensing fees, based on The DayLight’s calculation of official fee structures. Liberia could be losing US$1.4 billion annually due to smuggling in the mining sector, according to SwissAid, which tracks gold trading from Africa.

A screenshot of Deep Gold Incorporated's terminated licenses. — Official records show that Deep Gold Incorporated Liberia does not have a mining license for southeastern Liberia or an active license anywhere.

A land conflict

Deep Gold awakens an old land dispute between Gmarkemkpo and its neighbor, stalling the company’s illegal activities. In early May, it decided to extend its operations. The neighboring Nana Kru, which also claims the plot, protested and demanded a separate MoU with Deep Gold.

Sam Seah, Sr., the Superintendent of Dugbe River District, halted all activities. Then last month, the parties had the resolution meeting and submitted an MoU each. Seah ordered Deep Gold to work with the two communities and merge their MoUs.

Additionally, Deep Gold paid Nana Kru US$1,500 for polluting Fenja, a creek residents depend on for washing, cooking, and fishing. The creek is one of several tributaries of the Dugbe River, which runs throughout the southeast into the Atlantic Ocean. Tarpeh, Deep Gold’s PRO, revealed the company agreed to pay the community L$100,000 monthly as part of the fine.

A drone shot of Deep Gold Incorporated's mine in Gmarkemkpo, Sinoe County — Aerial view of Gmarkemkpo town in Sinoe County, showing mining pits nearly encircling the town. The DayLight/ Samuel Jabba

During four visits to the area, reporters observed that the creek was dark brown from the mining activities. Several canals divert water from the creek to the mine to wash gold-trapping gravel. Muddy runoffs, the byproducts of the process, emptied everywhere.

Angeline Swen, a 36-year-old townswoman, died of bloody diarrhea in February, likely linked to the contaminated water, according to her death certificate seen by The DayLight.

“We can’t even do anything with the water,” said Grace Nimely, a food seller in Gmarkemkpo.

Deep Mining took responsibility for the pollution. It erected three hand pumps in Gmarkemkpo, but they have all broken down. Townspeople now carry water sacks with them to their farms, with L$300 for one sack.

Back at the graveyard, sorrow subdued the surroundings. One of the newest, Peter Togba’s grave, is almost surely identifiable.

Barclay said, “My greatest regret is [Peter Togba] who died and the child that fell into the pit, especially since the company never took responsibility.”

This story was produced by DayLight with support from the Embassy of Ireland through Integrity Watch Liberia. The DayLight maintained editorial independence over its content, which does not reflect the position of the Embassy of Ireland or Integrity Watch Liberia.

Investigation Finds Flaws and Falsehoods in Presidential Letter

July 13, 2026

Farmers lied in letter to President Boakai — A forest in Boundary, Grand Gedeh County

Top: A drone picture of a forest in Grand Gedeh County. The DayLight/Samuel Jabba

By Varney Kamara

POUH TOWN – Local cocoa farmers in Grand Gedeh County manipulated signatures in an appeal letter to President Joseph Boakai, rejecting boundaries between their communities and the Kwa Proposed Protected Area, a DayLight investigation found. The investigation established that the letter was based on falsehoods, as some had already agreed to the proposed park’s boundaries.

Late last month, farmers from the Gbarzon District wrote to President Joseph Boakai, claiming forestry authorities did not seek their consent before cutting the boundaries. They allege that they signed no MoU and there was no guarantee they would have access to their farmlands. They had been intimidated, their properties destroyed, and forest rangers made unauthorized entry into their communities.

For this reason, the farmers want the proposed park’s boundaries pushed to 10 kilometers. President Boakai then ordered an immediate investigation into the matter. Official talks took place last weekend as part of the presidential inquest.

Covering 172,200 hectares, the Kwa Proposed Protected Area lies between River Cess, Sinoe, and Grand Gedeh Counties. It is part of Liberia’s efforts to protect 30 percent of its forests and contributes to the country’s climate commitments.

An ‘error’

The DayLight reviewed the appeal letter, interviewed some of its signatories, and found inconsistencies. Reporters found that although the letter to the President lists 16 signatures, only 15 people actually signed it. Abednego Zweh, a farmer from Pouh Town, where most of the appealing farmers live, signed twice.

George Totaye, another Pouh Town farmer, said he did not sign the letter.

“I personally cannot remember signing any petition. I cannot remember signing that communication,” said Totaye. “My farm does not extend on that side. I am not close to the park. I am not part of them.”

Zweh insists Totaye signed the letter, but listing 16 signatories instead of 15 was an “error.”

Routy Beh, a cocoa farmer in Pouh Town, sits behind his half-dried cocoa beans. The DayLight/Varney Kamara

Garretson Seo, one of the cocoa farmers, grants an interview with The DayLight in Pouh Town. The DayLight/Varney Kamara

Dixon Roberts, General Town Chief of Tojallah, is one of 15 cocoa farmers who wrote to President Joseph Boakai. The DayLight/Varney Kamara

Several of the 15 cocoa farmers who wrote the appeal to President Boakai had consented to Kwa in 2023. They told The DayLight they hosted between two and 10 Burkinabés. Dixon Roberts (six Burkinabés) of Tojallah signed. Tommy Yarkpawolo (two) and Garretson Seo (10) of Goluay signed.

There were other inconsistencies regarding the farmers’ appeal, though. Last year, the communities signed a boundary harmonization agreement with the FDA and partners, confirming the 2023 boundary. Then early this year, the clans that host the communities signed agreements with the Liberia Land Authority, confirming the boundaries.

The DayLight also noted one more issue. Pouh Town, where the majority of the farmers live, is not among the communities adjacent to the proposed park. It is 19 kilometers away.

The farmers admitted signing the consent forms. However, they claimed they were unaware of any boundary demarcation.

“We agreed for the park to be created, but we never agreed on any boundary issue, and we did not take part in any boundary demarcation exercise,” said Yarkpawolo, who has a three-hectare cocoa farm in Gaye Town.

“During our previous meetings with the FDA and the Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, we agreed that they would come back to us when they get ready to cut the lines. But, to our surprise, we only saw them destroying our crops,” added Yarkpawolo. His comments reflect the general view of farmers The DayLight interviewed, including those who did not sign the letter to Boakai.

But the facts contradict the farmers’ comments. The documents they signed show that they agreed to the boundaries, among other things.

“Our town confirms that since 2020 the FDA, LLA and partners have been holding community consultations and meetings to keep us informed. Our town confirms that as part of the boundary harmonization process, the boundary line was trekked by designated community members, local authorities, and relevant institutions, and all grievances were resolved,” read the consent document Yarkpawolo and other townspeople signed in Goluay.

A cocoa farm in Gbaryea Town in Gbarzon District, Grand Gedeh County. The DayLight/Varney Kamara

Apart from the consent form, other documents disprove the farmers’ comments.

As recently as May, community land leaders and clan chiefs signed a boundary agreement with the Liberia Land Authority for the proposed park. In the document, the farmers “fully acknowledged” the proposed Kwa Park and agreed on its “official boundaries.” Also, there is no record of any farmer raising any qualms when authorities published notices about the proposed park between June and August 2023.

Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, an NGO that works with the FDA to establish Kwa, refuted the farmers’ claim.

“From our side, the consent forms were signed by the rightful community representatives in 2023,” said Dr Annika Hillers, Country Director of Wild Chimpanzee Foundation. “The consent forms were about the establishment of the park, the confirmation of the [consent] process, the harmonized boundary, and also, communities committed not to do any farming and other activities inside the proposed park.”

Some youths agree on the current boundaries. “We need reserved forests for our children,” and “Enough is enough,” adorned their posters.

One farmer somehow conceded.

“I think we made a mistake from the beginning as a community,” said Dixon Poya, who lives and farms in Pouh Town. “When the people came with this discussion on the park issue, we were too quick to agree. We should have studied all other conditions that we are raising now.

“In my mind, we should accept what is happening. We can only appeal to the government to have some consideration and redraw the boundary back a little bit,” added Poya.

Under pressure

Dr Hillers also denies allegations of human rights abuses. “We are 100 percent sure that these allegations are false and that neither FDA nor any other law enforcement entity ever violated human rights or did anything not in line with Liberian laws,” she added.

The FDA did not respond to DayLight’s queries while the government investigates the issue. However, the FDA resurveyed the area and found that over 14,000 hectares of the proposed park have been clear-cut for cocoa cultivation.

Over the years, the park has shrunk from 236,246 hectares to 172,200 hectares due to competing mining and logging interests. The farmers’ boundary appeal comes amid cocoa-fueled, nationwide deforestation. Between 2000 and 2020, Liberia lost approximately 2.52 million hectares of tree cover, with cocoa responsible for about 15 percent of that, according to a 2024 report.

Local people smuggle in Burkinabe migrants from neighboring Ivory Coast into Liberia to plant cocoa. An estimated 140,000 Burkinabes have migrated to Liberia in Grand Gedeh and River Gee, according to the Liberia Refugee Repatriation and Resettlement Commission. This cocoa rush has also resulted in encroachments on community forests and logging concessions, leaving deadly land conflicts in its wake.

Cocoa Farmers Ask Gov’t to Push Proposed Park Behind

July 10, 2026

Elders and chiefs at a meeting in Gaye Town to discuss the boundaries of the Kwa Proposed Protected Area in Grand Gedeh — Chiefs and elders meet for the Kwa Proposed Protected Area

Top: Some participants at the meeting in Gaye Town. The DayLight/Esau J. Farr

By Esau J. Farr

GAYE TOWN – Cocoa farmers in Grand Gedeh County have requested that boundaries between the Kwa Proposed Protected Area and their communities be extended.

The communities lie between 3.8 and 19 kilometers from Kwa, which covers 172,200 hectares across Grand Gedeh, River Cess and Sinoe. However, they want the boundary lines to be 10 kilometers further away so they can access more farmlands.

“We can guarantee you that when this boundary line is passed, you don’t need to pay people to protect the park. We ourselves will protect the forest,” said Abednego Zweh, Chairman of Grand Gedeh’s farmers. Zweh spoke at a recent meeting to resolve a dispute with the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) and partners in Gaye Town, Gbarzon District.

“If our request is not honored by the President, we will still appeal,” he added.

The meeting was part of an investigation President Joseph Boakai ordered last month following the farmers’ appeal for his intervention.

In their letter to President Boakai, the farmers claimed that they did not consent to the proposed park’s boundaries. They accused authorities of abusing their rights, allegations authorities deny.

FDA boss Rudolph Merab chats with Grand Gedeh lawmaker Jacob Debee. Lawmaker Jeremiah Sokan and Thomas Yaya and other county authorities at the meeting. The DayLight/Esau J. Farr

The farmers said they participated in meetings, but were unaware of any boundary arrangements.

Clement Tweh, the program manager of Wild Chimpanzee Foundation—an NGO that works with the FDA to establish Kwa—dismissed those claims. Tweh said the farmers signed consent and boundary documents.

“We don’t want a handful of individuals who have farms and are not the actual representatives of the communities to benefit, rather than the entire community,” said Tweh. The DayLight independently reviewed the documents to verify his claims.

‘Let the boundaries remain’

Interestingly, a group of concerned youths of Gbarzon District disagreed with the farmers. Led by Leo Wilson Jahyee, the youths carried placards, brandishing inscriptions: “Let the boundaries remain,” “We need reserved forests for our children,” and “Enough is enough.”

“We believe that forests should be managed, be cared for and the boundary line should remain,” Jahyee said.

The group accused the farmers of wanting to expand their cocoa farms with the help of Burkinabe migrants they host. Several of the farmers The DayLight interviewed had at least two Burkinabe migrants. About 140,000 Burkinabe migrants are in Grand Gedeh and River Gee, according to the Liberia Refugee, Repatriation and Resettlement Commission (LRRRC).

Members of the concerned youths of Gbao District at the Gaye Town meeting. The DayLight/Esau J. Farr

Cocoa farming is fast depleting Grand Gedeh’s forest. Local farmers have encroached on logging concessions, community forests, and the proposed park. From 2002 to last year, Gbarzon lost 46,000 hectares, or 14 percent of its primary forest, according to the Global Forest Watch, an app that tracks deforestation.

Following presentations from the opposing sides, the FDA Managing Director Rudolph Merab told locals they would hear from him following a meeting with President Boakai.

“I could have concluded [this matter] right now and made a decision, but unfortunately, I cannot do that because you have also written the President,” said Merab. “I cannot make a decision without consulting him.”

At the end of the meeting, the farmers agreed not to extend their farms until they hear from the FDA. Meanwhile, the regulator has mandated forest rangers to halt all operations in the disputed areas, pending the President’s decision.

Monthly Archives: July 2026

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