“I’m traumatized”: Money exchanger robbed at gunpoint in broad daylight at Barnesville

MONROVIA – Othello Teah, a 39-year-old money exchanger at the Barnesville Bend and Stop and a resident of Barnesville Kpelleh Town, looked glum as he stepped out of his room for an interview with me. His facial expression clearly indicated that he had endured a traumatic experience in the past few days. 

By Zeze Ballah, with Crime Watch Liberia

Before the interview, Teah was almost speechless. After several minutes, he agreed to share his ordeal with the Crime Watch Liberia Program aired on HOTT FM 107.9 following a recent armed robbery. 

Crime Watch Liberia, a nightly radio initiative dedicated to community safety and emergency response, closely coordinates its night operations with the Liberia National Police and other community neighborhood watch volunteers to reduce crime-related issues.

Teah recounted that on Thursday, June 19, 2025, between 6:35 am and 6:40 am, while serving customers at the Bend and Stop, he noticed two men approaching him—one wielding a short black and brown single-barrel gun and the other carrying a machete. 

“I usually leave my house at 6 a.m. to go change money at the Barnesville Bend and Stop,” he explained. “The man with the gun fired a shot into the air and ordered his companion with the machete to kill me if I tried to move.” 

Teah shared that the armed man with the gun took US$2,600 in cash along with L$150,000, his business phone (which had both Lone Star and Orange mobile money SIM cards), his passport, and his National Identification card. 

During the escape attempt, a struggle ensued, and the gun fell to the ground. With tears rolling down his cheeks, Teah expressed his shock that bystanders were present during the attack but did nothing to help. 

“I am traumatized and have lost everything,” he added. Teah stressed that the business was his source of income to sustain his family.

He also mentioned the difficulty he faces in retrieving his mobile money SIM cards due to the loss of his National Identification card. “I reported the incident, along with the gun, to the Liberia National Police in the Barnesville Estate,” Teah stated. 

His case is just one of many incidents occurring in and around Monrovia, where vulnerable individuals are attacked in broad daylight without assistance from bystanders.

Crime Watch Liberia has filed a Freedom of Information request with the Liberia National Police to obtain a copy of the crime statistics report in Montserrado.