According to Reuters, after offerings were collected during the Christian worship event in New Kru Town, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Monrovia, a group of armed men charged the stage and attempted to steal the money.
Street gang violence is reportedly common in Liberia. Gangs called Zogos regularly commit armed robberies using machetes and other small weapons.
“We saw a group of men with cutlasses and other weapons coming toward the crowd,” Exodus Morias, a local resident who attended the event, told Reuters. “While running, some people dropped, and others fell on the ground and walked over them.”
Moses Carter, a spokesman for the police force, could not confirm how or why the incident began but said that an investigation is currently underway.
The organizer of the event, the radio host and World of Life Outreach International pastor known as Apostle Abraham Kromah, is cooperating with the police in the investigation.
Kromah’s followers reportedly believe he has the power to heal and aid people through prayer.
On Thursday, Liberian president George Weah visited the site of the incident. He also declared a three-day period of mourning and noted that the Liberian Red Cross and Disaster Management Agency had been deployed to aid victims.
The bodies of the dead victims were taken to Redemption Hospital.
The current death toll is 29 people, though that number may rise as several others are still in critical condition.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Edwin Remsberg
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