Benjamin Yeaten (born 28 February 1969), widely known by his old radio

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assign ...

"50", is a Liberian militia leader and mercenary, who served as the

Armed Forces of Liberia The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are the armed forces of the Republic of Liberia. Tracing its origins to a militia that was formed by the first black colonists in what is now Liberia, it was founded as the Liberian Frontier Force in 1908, and r ...

's deputy commander and director of the Special Security Service (SSS) during the presidency of Charles Taylor. Notorious for committing several war crimes, Yeaten was one of Taylor's most trusted and loyal followers. He rose to the ''de facto'' leader of all of Taylor's armed forces and the second most powerful figure in the government during the Second Liberian Civil War. After the fall of Taylor's regime, he managed to flee his home country, and since then operates covertly in West Africa as commander, recruiter, and military adviser for hire.

Biography

Service under Charles Taylor

Early life and rise in ranks

Benjamin Yeaten was born on 28 February 1969 in Tiaplay,

Nimba County Nimba County is a county in northeastern Liberia that shares borders with the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire in the East and the Republic of Guinea in the Northwest. Its capital city is Sanniquellie and its most populous city is Ganta. With the co ...

, Liberia, which was one of the areas in Liberia that suffered the most under

Samuel Doe Samuel Kanyon Doe (6 May 1951 – 9 September 1990) was a Liberian politician who served as the 21st president of Liberia from 1980 to 1990. Doe ruled Liberia as Chairman of the People's Redemption Council (PRC) from 1980 to 1984 and then as ...

's regime. As result, Yeaten joined the rebel army that Charles Taylor was building in exile in

Tajura Tajura ( ar, تاجوراء, translit=Tājūrā), also spelt ''Tajoura'', is a town in north-western Libya, and baladiyah in the Tripoli Muhafazah, on the Mediterranean coast east of Tripoli. From 2001 to 2007 Tajura was the capital of the ...

, Libya. At the time of his enlistment, he was 14 or 15 and one of the youngest recruits in the new force. Displaying determination, bravery and loyalty during the guerilla training at Tajura, Yeaten impressed Taylor himself. With his rebel force officially consolidated as the

National Patriotic Front of Liberia The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) was a Liberian rebel group that initiated and participated in the First Liberian Civil War from 1989 to 1996. Leadership The military aspects of NPFL were led by Charles Taylor, a former governmen ...

(NPFL), Taylor launched his insurgency against Doe's government in 1989, starting the

First Liberian Civil War The First Liberian Civil War lasted from 1989 to 1997. President Samuel Doe had established a regime in 1980 but totalitarianism and corruption led to unpopularity and the withdrawal of support from the United States by the late 1980s. The Nat ...

. Yeaten also took part in the civil war, and quickly rose through the ranks in the NPFL. Yeaten became close to his leader, viewing him as "father figure". In turn, Taylor trusted him, and Yeaten was described as "Taylor's surrogate son in the rebel hierarchy" at the time. In course of the first civil war, Yeaten also earned his feared and brutal reputation. The men under his command committed numerous massacres, such as the one at Carter Camp in 1993, where over 600 civilians were murdered.

Peacetime 1997–99

When Taylor won the civil war and became President of Liberia in 1997, Yeaten came to hold the most important security positions in the new government. He was appointed head of the Special Security Service (SSS, also known as "ninjas"), which served as presidential guard, and the Special Operations Division. Under his command, the SSS quickly became infamous for its brutality and abuses, while Yeaten came to serve as Taylor's hitman. He carried out numerous political murders, with one of the most notorious cases occurring shortly after the Liberian general election, 1997: On 3 December 1997, Samuel Dokie, one of Taylor's political rivals, was detained alongside his family in Nimba County. On the following day, Yeaten and his men arrived, took them into custody, and transported them to an undisclosed location. The whole family was subsequently brutally murdered, and when their corpses were found, the bodies were so extremely mutilated that only Samuel Dokie's head was still identifiable. Although Dokie's death was a scandal with much publicity, which prompted President Taylor to deny any involvement in the killings and order an investigation, Yeaten was never prosecuted and kept his job. The U.S. embassy at the time simply noted that Yeaten was one of the "known human rights abusers" in Liberia. Despite his power in the government, Yeaten still faced a rival in the form of Taylor's son

Charles McArther Emmanuel Charles McArther Emmanuel (born February 12, 1978), also known as Chuckie Taylor, is the son of Charles Taylor, the former President of Liberia.Anti-Terrorist Unit (ATU) which was effectively in competition for resources with Yeaten's units. Though the two vied for influence and President Taylor's attention, Yeaten was generally more powerful and much more feared than Chuckie. When President Taylor began to support the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) during the Sierra Leone Civil War, Yeaten became involved in supplying arms and ammunition to these rebels. Independently from Taylor, Yeaten developed a close friendship with RUF commander Sam Bockarie in 1998, and consequently often communicated with him without authorization.

Second Liberian Civil War

After the outbreak of the Second Liberian Civil War in 1999, Yeaten further rose in prominence, and he was appointed lieutenant general, becoming both the most senior general as well as deputy commander of the armed forces. In the war's first year, he commanded a mixed force of Liberian soldiers and Sierran Leonean RUF fighters at

Voinjama Voinjama is a small city that serves as the capital of Lofa County, Liberia and is located in the hilly, far northern part of the country near the Guinean border. As of the 2008 national census, the population stood at 26,594. Before the Liberian ...

and

Foya Foya is a town in the Foya District of Lofa County, Liberia. Located 66 kilometers from Voinjama, it is home to the Kissi-speaking tribes of Liberia. Foya shares border with Sierra Leone and Guinea; it is the major trade link for the people in t ...

, battling local insurgents. When the latter managed to capture Voinjama, Yeaten launched a number of counter-attacks, eventually retaking the town. To his annoyance, the RUF fighters then started to loot the area and harass civilians. Yeaten ordered them to leave Voinjama, telling them that "here you are not rebels. You’re fighting for the government. You’re not rebels here." By early 2000, Yeaten had triumphed in his rivalry with Chuckie, who had proven to be completely incapable as ATU commander. As result, President Taylor made Yeaten the ''de facto'' leader of the ATU, filling its ranks with Yeaten's followers. Along with the ATU, Yeaten became involved in the

First Ivorian Civil War The First Ivorian Civil War was a civil conflict in the Ivory Coast (also known as Côte d'Ivoire) that began with a military rebellion on 19 September 2002 and ended with a peace agreement on 4 March 2007. The conflict pitted the government o ...

while the fighting in Liberia was still ongoing. His troops supported the Ivorian New Forces in western Ivory Coast, and were responsible for widespread looting and many civilian deaths in Danané. By 2002, however, the situation of the Liberian government was deteriorating. Taylor responded by putting Yeaten effectively in charge of the whole war effort. While he was considered a capable commander, who inspired both fear as well as respect among his troops, Yeaten could not stop the collapse of Taylor's regime. A major and successful government counter-offensive in northern Liberia that recaptured

Tubmanburg Tubmanburg, also known as Bomi and formerly known as Vaitown, is the capital of Bomi County in Liberia. It lies in the Bomi Hills northwest of Monrovia and was an iron ore and diamond mining centre until it was largely destroyed in the First Libe ...

proved inconsequential, while the rebels were gaining strength. Lieutenant General Yeaten's conduct of war was however noted for its ruthlessness, brutality, and numerous war crimes: He mass recruited

child soldiers Children (defined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child as people under the age of 18) have been recruited for participation in military operations and campaigns throughout history and in many cultures. Children in the military, includ ...

, raped women, ordered the massacre of civilians, tortured presumed enemies, and forced captured rebels to fight each other to the death. As defeat became increasingly likely, Taylor began to distrust the Sierran Leoneans among his forces (including the RUF) and fear them as political liabilities. Eventually, the president decided to have them killed - a task he entrusted to Yeaten. The lieutenant general thus became involved in a plot to murder the RUF leader Sam Bockarie despite his past friendship with the Sierra Leonean rebel. Yeaten lured Bockarie into the jungle of Nimba County under the guise of a "special mission". Although Bockarie already suspected that something was amiss at the time, he went along with Yeaten. In course of the trip into the jungle, their convoy repeatedly stopped, and one after another Bockarie's bodyguards were ordered to leave their cars, taken away, and executed. As the group reached the place where Bockarie himself was supposed to be executed, the rebel leader managed to escape. In the end, however, Yeaten and his men tricked Bockarie into revealing himself, whereupon they beat him to death. They then raped and killed Bockarie's wife and executed his son and mother. Yeaten and the SSS were also responsible for the murder of John W. Yormie, Deputy Minister of National Security, and Isaac Vaye, Deputy Minister for Technical Service at the Public Works, in June 2003. In July 2003, the war finally turned decisively against the government loyalists. Yeaten's forces were overrun by

LURD The Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) was a rebel group in Liberia that was active from 1999 until the resignation of Charles Taylor ended the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003. While the group formally dissolved after the w ...

rebels, who proceeded to lay siege to Monrovia. The lieutenant general consequently personally commanded the government forces during the siege. By this time, he had become the second most powerful individual in the government, more so than

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Moses Blah Moses Zeh Blah (18 April 1947 – 1 April 2013) was a Liberian politician. He served as the 28th vice president of Liberia under President Charles Taylor and became the 23rd president of Liberia on 11 August 2003, following Taylor's resignation. ...

. When Taylor travelled to Ghana in order to take part in peace talks with the rebels, it seemed possible that Taylor might be arrested by Ghanaian authorities. This came not to pass, however, mostly due to Yeaten threatening to execute Ghanaians who resided in Liberia in the case of Taylor's detention. As it became clear to Taylor that he had lost the war and agreed to resign from office in August 2003, Yeaten still commanded the remaining government forces in Monravia. Despite the implementation of a ceasefire, Yeaten personally threatened to renew hostilities in the case that the rebels failed to withdraw from the city's port. In the end, however, the government forces laid down arms. Yeaten consequently decided to go into exile, fearing possible reprisals. Shortly before fleeing the country, he murdered his fiancée, who was only known as "Babygirl", and disposed of her body.

In exile

After escaping from Liberia, Yeaten went into hiding somewhere in West Africa, hunted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation for war crimes and crimes against humanity. He subsequently became active as mercenary. Expert Robert Tynes commented that Yeaten's choice of work was not surprising, as "armed conflict is his world", and fighting is "what he was taught to do since boyhood". He went on to work for

Faure Gnassingbé Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé Eyadéma (; born 6 June 1966"Biographie de nouve ...

, President of Togo, and

Yahya Jammeh Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh (born 25 May 1965) is a Gambian politician and former military officer who was the leader of The Gambia from 1994 to 2017, firstly as chairman of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) from 19 ...

, President of the Gambia, from whom he hope to gain protection in return for training their elite forces. He is supposed to have trained the Togolese presidential bodyguards "on guerrilla tactics and other warfare maneuvers". According to the

Special Court for Sierra Leone The Special Court for Sierra Leone, or the "Special Court" (SCSL), also called the Sierra Leone Tribunal, was a judicial body set up by the government of Sierra Leone and the United Nations to "prosecute persons who bear the greatest responsibil ...

's chief investigator, Yeaten eventually agreed to cooperate with the court, but was barred from leaving his exile in Togo by local officials. In January 2009, Liberia's Ministry of Justice officially ordered Yeaten's arrest on charges of murder, and asked

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

to assist them in searching for him. Interpol consequently issued a

red notice An Interpol notice is an international alert circulated by Interpol to communicate information about crimes, criminals, and threats by police in a member state (or an authorised international entity) to their counterparts around the world. The in ...

for Yeaten. Otherwise, however, the Liberian government did little to actually arrest and prosecute him. In course of the

Second Ivorian Civil War The Second Ivorian Civil War broke out in March 2011 when the crisis in Ivory Coast escalated into full-scale military conflict between forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Ivory Coast since 2000, and supporters of the internationall ...

in 2010/11, Yeaten reportedly fought alongside the New Forces rebels, with whom he had already cooperated almost ten years earlier. He was responsible for recruiting Liberian fighters to bolster their ranks. Conversely, other sources claimed that he was in southeastern Ivory Coast by January 2011, and intended to join

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Laurent Gbagbo Koudou Laurent Gbagbo
, FPI website . ( Some Monrovian newspapers even claimed in 2015 that he was secretly building a guerrilla army in the forests, while planning an uprising against the new Liberian government. In 2016, Yeaten lived in

Lomé Lomé is the capital and largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437

, Togo, and although he allegedly was still protected by Gnassingbé, the Togolese President came under increasing international pressure to extradite Yeaten so that he could be prosecuted in Liberia. Meanwhile, Yeaten began to covertly form a unit of over 200 mercenaries in Liberia, recruited from NPFL and

ULIMO The United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (ULIMO) was an anti-rebel group that participated in the First Liberian Civil War (1989–1996). ULIMO was formed in May 1991 by Krahn and Mandingo refugees and soldiers who had fought in the ...

ex-fighters. With this unit he resurfaced in December 2016 in the Gambia, reportedly hired by President Jammeh to protect him in case of an invasion of

ECOWAS The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an area of , and in ...

to depose him. In the end, the crisis ended peacefully; it is assumed that Yeaten consequently returned to Togo.

References

Works cited

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yeaten, Benjamin 20th-century criminals 21st-century criminals African warlords Liberian exiles Liberian rebels Living people Liberian expatriates in Togo Liberian military personnel People from Nimba County 1969 births Child soldiers in Africa Mercenaries