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Liberian man deported after nearly 20 years in U.S.

Aug 11, 2026·Location: MD

Country of origin: Liberia

Liberian man deported after nearly 20 years in U.S.
Photo via Fox News

Amos Sheik Massaquoi, 55, a former combatant in Liberia's civil wars, was deported to Liberia after living in the United States for nearly two decades. ICE alleges he served as chief bodyguard to Maj. Gen. Daniel Chea, a former leader in Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia, and that he participated in or ordered extrajudicial killings, torture, forced labor, arbitrary detentions, and the recruitment of child soldiers between 1989 and 2003. ICE also said he received specialized military training at an academy in China in 2004. He entered the U.S. legally in 2006 but overstayed his authorization, and Homeland Security Investigations arrested him in Maryland in 2019, after which he was released on bond. ICE took him back into custody in Baltimore on April 1, 2025, after he failed to comply with his release conditions, an immigration judge ordered his removal the following month, and he was deported to Liberia on August 11, 2026.

Timeline

Aug 11, 2026—Deported to Liberia by ICE
May 1, 2025—Immigration judge ordered his removal
Jan 1, 2025—Taken back into ICE custody after failing to comply with release conditions
Jan 1, 2019—Arrested by Homeland Security Investigations in Maryland and later released on bond
Jan 1, 2006—Entered the United States legally
Jan 1, 1989—Alleged period of extrajudicial killings, torture, forced labor and child soldier recruitment begins in Liberia's civil wars
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