Remains of President Tolbert and 13 Officials Of His Administration Found; Exhumation Underway for Proper Burial

A search team from St. Moses Funeral Parlor has reportedly uncovered a mass grave at Palm Grove Cemetery, believed to contain the remains of former President William R. Tolbert Jr. and 13 senior officials of his administration who were executed following the 1980 coup.

However, after 45 years of uncertainty, families seeking closure were left disappointed on the first day of the search when the site traditionally recognized as the mass grave was found empty. This revelation has deepened the mystery surrounding the final resting place of the slain officials.

A Symbolic Burial?

Madam Maureen Shaw, a longtime resident of the UN Drive Community and a member of the family that owns Palm Grove Cemetery, cast doubts over the widely believed location of the mass grave.

According to Shaw, the grave that had been marked for decades was merely symbolic rather than the actual burial site.

“When William R. Tolbert Jr. fixed this grave here, it was symbolic. They just did it so that every year, people could come, pray, and lay wreaths, but nothing was really there,” she explained.

Recalling the grim events of April 22, 1980, Shaw described how the bodies were dumped into a mass grave.

“I saw the dump truck raise the bodies, and I started crying. I saw former government officials and Tolbert in his white suit – and here they dumped them,” she recounted.

Discovery of an Unknown Location

After days of searching, the team reportedly made a breakthrough on the third day, uncovering an unknown location where human remains were found. According to sources, these remains are believed to belong to President Tolbert and the 13 officials executed alongside him.

This discovery follows a major setback when the originally marked mass grave was found to be empty.

A Step Toward Closure

The exhumation process, spearheaded by St. Moses Funeral Parlor and supported by the April 22nd Memorial Group, aims to bring long-awaited closure to the families who have endured decades of unanswered questions.

It has been 45 years since the April 22, 1980, coup, which dramatically reshaped Liberia’s history. The coup, led by Master Sergeant Samuel K. Doe and a group of low-ranking soldiers, resulted in the assassination of President Tolbert. Ten days later, 13 senior officials of his administration were executed by firing squad following a kangaroo court trial, and their bodies were dumped into a single mass grave.

The recovered remains will be transferred to St. Moses Funeral Parlor for advanced autopsy testing before a formal reburial is conducted by the end of 2025.

Source: FPA