Liberian Men Convicted Of Stealing $1.4M In U.S. Aid

The United States federal court convicted two Liberian men on Tuesday of conspiring to steal more than $1.4 million in U.S. aid from World Vision, a Christian charity, BBC reports.

Joe Bondo and Morris Fahnbulleh allegedly stole food aid intended to help Liberians recover from 14 years of civil war. Lanny Breuer, the U.S. assistant attorney general, told the AFP:

"Rather than help their fellow citizens in need, these defendants sold food intended as aid and pocketed the proceeds."

Fahnbulleh and Bondo, who worked for the charity, used construction materials and aid workers to build themselves multiple homes for two years. After receiving an anonymous tip, World Vision in 2007 launched an investigation to track the diverted deliveries.

The Associated Press reported:

It sent auditors to 258 Liberian towns that supposedly benefited from the program. The auditors found 91 percent of the food was not delivered and 34 of the towns didn't even exist.

Read more about the two men's conviction at BBC.