A female warlord who has been accused of recruiting and leading child soldiers in Liberia’s civil wars was deported from the United States and returned to Liberia earlier this month by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
In a Monday press release, ICE confirmed that 43-year-old Mayama Sesay was removed from the United States and returned to Liberia on September 5. ICE noted that the 43-year-old is “infamously known as the rebel commander ‘Black Diamond,'” and claimed that Sesay had a “prominent role in recruiting and leading child soldiers” in the civil wars in Liberia.
“Sesay commanded an all-female group of fighters known as the Women’s Artillery Commandos, part of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy, a rebel group formed to oppose former Liberian president Charles Taylor,” ICE stated.
“At just 22 years old, Sesay recruited and trained child soldiers to fight against Taylor’s forces,” ICE added. “During the conflict, she gained notoriety for her brutal tactics, including restraining, beating captured soldiers, and deploying mortar bombs to terrorize and kill military personnel and civilians. Sesay has been designated as a war criminal in Liberia.”
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According to Monday’s press release, Sesay originally entered the United States on March 27, 2014, with a visitor’s visa. After entering the United States, Sesay married a U.S. citizen and later applied for permanent residence in the country in April of 2015.
While Sesay denied that she was the infamous “Black Diamond” Liberian warlord and denied having any connection with the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy during her immigration interview, an immigration judge ordered removal proceedings against the 43-year-old over claims that she “lacked credibility and had used and recruited child soldiers,” according to ICE.
On May 26, 2022, an immigration judge ordered Sesay to be removed from the United States and returned to Liberia. ICE explained that the judge’s decision was affirmed by the Board of Immigration Appeals and that ICE Atlanta officials took Sesay into custody on April 19, 2025, prior to her removal earlier this month.
