An ex-rebel commander accused of leading child soldiers during Liberia’s brutal wars has been deported from the United States.
Authorities confirmed that 43-year-old Mayama Sesay, known as “Black Diamond,” was returned to Liberia earlier this month after lengthy immigration proceedings.
Sesay entered the United States on a visitor’s visa in 2014 and sought permanent residency through marriage, but her case collapsed.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Sesay gained notoriety for recruiting child fighters and commanding an all-female rebel unit.
Officials described her as a feared figure, accused of beating captives, restraining soldiers, and deploying mortars that terrorized civilians and troops alike.
Despite her denials, a US immigration judge ruled she lacked credibility and had engaged in the forced conscription of children.
ICE officers in Atlanta took her into custody in April, concluding a long battle over her immigration status.
She was deported on September 5, with US authorities branding her a war criminal complicit in atrocities committed during Liberia’s wars.
Liberian immigration officials confirmed her arrival, stressing there are no formal charges against her, though she remains under state supervision.
Commissioner General Elijah Rufus said Sesay was released to relatives and could be summoned by authorities whenever required.
He suggested deportees, including Sesay, would be offered counseling to help them reintegrate into Liberian society.
Liberia, among the poorest nations globally, continues struggling to recover from the Ebola epidemic and its violent past.
Two civil wars between 1989 and 2003 left an estimated 250,000 dead, with massacres, rape, and child soldiers haunting the nation’s memory.
Sesay’s return stirs painful reminders of that dark chapter, when young lives were shattered by commanders who turned innocence into weapons.