Three people have been reported dead, and numerous others injured, after a car ploughed into a gathering of Liberia’s president-elect, Joseph Boakai’s supporters in Monrovia on Monday evening.
While a police official declined to speculate on the cause, a spokesperson for Boakai’s party suspected it was intentional.
An official at John F. Kennedy Hospital, Sia Wata Camanor, confirmed three fatalities and noted one person in critical condition, with a total of 25 individuals sustaining injuries.
The event transpired on the night the National Electoral Commission announced Boakai’s narrow win over incumbent George Weah in the recent presidential election runoff held on November 14.
Celebrations by Boakai’s supporters turned tragic as a vehicle parked nearby reportedly flashed its lights, then abruptly drove into the crowd outside the party’s offices in the capital. Eyewitness accounts, as relayed by Unity Party spokesman Mohammed Ali, described the harrowing scene. Social media videos depicted the aftermath with numerous injured individuals receiving aid while others lay motionless.
Initial reports from Mohammed Ali mentioned a higher death toll, which later wasn’t substantiated.
While the identity of the perpetrator remains unknown, doubts linger regarding the possibility of a mechanical failure given the vehicle’s alleged deliberate actions as reported by eyewitnesses.
A police official, Melvin Sacko, described the vehicle ramming into the crowd and catching fire, yet specifics about casualties were not provided, except that at least 16 people, comprising 12 men and four women, were hospitalized at one medical facility.
