Mohammed Jabbateh, nom de guerre "Jungle Jabbah" is a Liberian native who stood trial in a US court beginning on October 2, 2017 for lying to United States authorities when he sought asylum in the late 1990s about his role in the First Liberian Civil War, a conflict that killed about 250,000 people and was followed the break out Second Liberian Civil War . On October 18, 2017, Jabbateh was charged in a Philadelphia federal courthouse with two counts of fraud in immigration documents and two counts of perjury stemming from statements he made to US authorities when filing for asylum and permanent residence. He is the first person convicted of crimes stemming from his war-related activities during the First Liberian Civil War.
United States Government
Main source: In December 1998, Mohammed Jabbateh submitted his application for US asylum and later for permanent legal residency. At that time the US Attorney claimed that Jabbateh was not truthful about his activities during Liberia's civil war. Jabbateh disclosed that he was a member of ULIMO and later ULIMO-K, but he did not reveal his alleged capacity. In January 1999, an immigration asylum officer interviewed Jabbateh to determine whether his asylum application should be granted. Jabbateh falsely responded "no" to these two questions: 1. "ave you ever committed a crime?" and 2. ave you ever harmed anyone else?" In January 1999, Jabbateh received US asylum based on his answers to questions posed on his Form I-589 asylum application form. Jabbateh also applied for legal permanent residency using Form I-485 with US immigration authorities. He falsely responded "No" to these two questions: 1. "Have you ever engaged in genocide, or otherwise ordered, incited, assisted or otherwise participated in the killing of any person because of race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin or political opinion?" 2. "Are you under a final order of civil penalty for violating section 274C of the Immigration and Nationality Act for use of fraudulent documents of have you, by fraud or willful misrepresentation of a material fact, ever sought to procure or procured a visa, other documentation, or entry into the US or any immigration benefit?" Jabbateh was a commander of higher-ranking officer in ULIMO and ULIMO-K, and during that time he either personally committed, or ordered ULIMO troops under his command to commit the following list of acts:
The killing of persons because of race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin or political opinion
Indictment and arrest
Main source: On March 10, 2016, Jabbateh was indicted and charged by the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania with two counts of fraud in immigration documents in violation of the 18 U.S.C. § 1546 and two counts of perjury in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1621. Jabbateh pleaded "not guilty" on all counts. The indictment was unsealed on April 13, 2016 and Jabbateh was arrested in his Delaware County home in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.
Trial
On October 2, 2017, Jabbateh was arraigned before the Honorable Judge Paul S. Diamond at the James A. Byrne Federal Courthouse in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US. The jury, composed of eight women and four men, was selected on October 2, 2017 and opening arguments began the following day on October 3, 2017. The trial lasted for three weeks until October 18, 2017. Assistant United States Attorney Linwood C. Wright, Jr. and Assistant United States Attorney Nelson S.T. Thayer prosecuted Mohammed Jabbateh. Thayer was previously a Trial Attorney at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and prosecuted the massacre in Srebrenica, Bosnia. The government proved that as a ULIMO-K commander in the late 1990s, Jabbateh either committed himself or ordered his troops to "commit crimes such as the murder of civilians, sexual enslavement of women, public rapes, conscription of child soldiers and maiming and torture of noncombatants." 20 witnesses and victims were flown from Liberia to Philadelphia to testify in court against Jabbateh. Gregory J. Pagano was the Attorney for Mohammed Jabbateh. Pagano interrogated the credibility of the government's selection of the witnesses and their testimonies. The defense counsel presented their case on October 16, 2017.
Verdict
On October 18, Jabbateh was convicted with two counts of fraud in immigration documents and two counts of perjury stemming from statements he made in connection with his applications for asylum and for legal permanent residence in the US. He was held guilty on all four charges. Jabbateh was sentenced to 30 years in prison on April 19, 2018.
Personal life
Jabbateh was granted US political asylum on December 23, 1999. He settled in Lansdowne, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Delaware County, US where he remained until his conviction in October 2017. Jabbateh has a wife and five children who live in Philadelphia. Jabbateh also has an ex-wife and at least seven children who live in his native Liberia or otherwise on the African continent, whom he attempted to sponsor to immigrate to the US. A few years after Jabbateh received legal residency he started a shipping company in 2008, Jabateh Brothers Loading Services that packages and ships containers to Liberia. It remains in operation. Jabbateh is known in his near-Philadelphia community as a righteous man. He does not hold a US passport and has not left the country since his arrival in 1998.
