Investigators put annual turnover at US$1bn; Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone cases expose political reach
TNR File
Investigators have confirmed that Joseph Johannes Leijdekkers, alias Bolle Jos, alias Omar Sherif, is directing his West African narcotics network from bases in Sierra Leone and Liberia.
The Dutch fugitive has kept out of sight since his emergence as an alleged son-in-law of Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio caused a political storm. Investigators say he has not left Sierra Leone. His network’s annual turnover is estimated at about US$1bn.
The New Republic understands that three unnamed Ghanaians linked to the Bolle Jos syndicate were arrested by the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) over 3.9 tonnes of cocaine intercepted by French Customs at the Port of Dunkirk on 7 September 2026.
The cocaine was concealed beneath recycled plastic waste in a container that originated in Ghana. It carried an estimated value of €225m and was one of the largest Ghana-linked seizures in recent memory. Part of the consignment was reportedly destined for Antwerp, a key European commercial port and a long-standing battleground between law enforcement and organised crime.
The Bolle Jos network has also been linked to a US$317m cocaine case involving former Liberian Vice-President Jewel Howard-Taylor. On 19 August 2026, Howard-Taylor, former wife of jailed warlord Charles Taylor and Vice-President to former President George Weah, was arrested at Roberts International Airport and charged with drug trafficking and money laundering.
Authorities, acting on intelligence that included secret recordings, stopped her as she tried to leave Liberia and took her to national police headquarters. She faces charges including drug trafficking, money laundering, illegal import of controlled drugs, criminal conspiracy and criminal solicitation. The case has underlined the network’s reach into West Africa’s political elite.
Bolle Jos is said to have relocated to Sierra Leone in 2022 after fleeing the Netherlands, where he was wanted for murder, drug trafficking and money laundering. He had first fled to Turkey with an Arabian wife, Hanani Alla, before leaving her and moving to Sierra Leone.
There he changed his name to Omar Sherif and cultivated ties to the first family. He reportedly married President Bio’s daughter, Agnes Bio, and had a child with her. First Lady Fatima Bio has denied any personal or familial connection to Jos and denies that he is married to her daughter or that she has a grandchild by him. The denials have done little to quiet speculation. At least one video has circulated showing the first family and Jos at a church function, with Jos seated beside Agnes behind President Bio and the First Lady.
Sierra Leonean authorities have provided serious security for the fugitive, frustrating Dutch and European efforts to secure his arrest. In May 2026, Dutch special forces reportedly came close to capturing him twice in West Africa, but both operations were called off at the last moment. In June 2026, the Netherlands sought stronger EU pressure on Sierra Leone over its failure to arrest and extradite him.
A year ago, Jos was seen socialising with Sierra Leone’s then Chief Immigration Officer, Alusine Kanneh. Investigative media reports published footage showing the two at a Freetown restaurant, with Leijdekkers giving Kanneh a birthday gift. Kanneh was dismissed in March 2025 after the footage became public.
Bolle Jos was convicted in the Netherlands in 2024 and sentenced to 24 years in prison for involvement in importing roughly 7,000 kg of cocaine in several shipments. The same conviction included commissioning an assassination, reportedly involving a €200,000 payment to a prospective hitman.
A Belgian court sentenced him to 10 years in a separate drug trafficking and violence case. Recent reporting on the Dutch case says his 24-year sentence also relates to an armed robbery of a cocaine shipment in Finland. Authorities have linked him to laundering tens of millions of euros and substantial quantities of gold. Dutch and international reporting has also linked Leijdekkers to the 2019 disappearance and presumed murder of Naima Jillal.
His organisation has been linked to additional large cocaine shipments, including a 2026 seizure of more than 30 tonnes from a vessel that had departed Sierra Leone.
The Liberia, Sierra Leone and Ghana cases open a window into how firmly Bolle Jos has embedded himself in West Africa. During the presidency of Nana Akufo-Addo in Ghana, the country became notably permissive towards his network, with 2023 and 2024 especially permissive years, allowing Ghana to be used as a transit point.
The Howard-Taylor arrest has reinforced the impression that the Dutch fugitive has West Africa’s political elite in his grip. Regional governments now face mounting pressure to act.