Former Liberian president Charles Taylor, on trial for war crimes, may have substantial hidden assets in Liberia and Nigeria, the New York Times reported on Thursday, citing documents for a UN Security Council panel.
The panel sent the Security Council its confidential report on Wednesday suggesting Taylor salted away part of his alleged half-billion-dollar fortune in investments in the two countries, and that he still has ties to a large Liberian cellphone company, the Times said.
Taylor startled his trial in The Hague by boycotting the opening session on June 4, saying he lacked resources to mount a defence and would never receive a fair hearing. He also dismissed his court-appointed lawyer.
Judge Julia Sebutinde, presiding over the trial before the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone - which has been moved to The Hague - ordered the trial to go ahead in his absence.
The first African head of state to stand trial for war crimes before an international tribunal, Taylor is accused of controlling rebels in neighbouring Sierra Leone responsible for a rampage of rape and mutilation financed by the illegal diamond trade.
The UN panel's report links Taylor to a timber company that was tied to arms dealer Guus van Kouwenhoven, who was convicted of smuggling weapons for Taylor in a Dutch court last year.
The panel, which includes financial analysts and timber and diamond trade specialists, said in its report it was prevented by the Nigerian government from travelling to the country to investigate Taylor's suspected assets there, the Times said.
The report also noted that Nigeria and Liberia have not frozen assets believed connected to Taylor. - Sapa-AFP