Brooklyn Park Police Department Denies Selling Fleet Of Vehicles To LNP

The Police Department in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, has denied selling fleet of vehicles directly to the Liberia National Police, contradicting recent claims concerning the reported source of vehicles acquired by Liberia’s police authorities.

The denial has come amid growing public discussion over the origin of the vehicles and followed comments attributed to Liberia’s Inspector General of Police, Colonel Gregory Coleman, who said the vehicles were purchased from police authorities in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, rather than being received from a drug cartel.

However, the Brooklyn Park Police Department said it has never sold vehicles directly to the Liberia National Police.

In an interview with KMTV in Minnesota, the city’s Chief of Police, Mark Bruley, said there was no direct sale of vehicles from his department to the Liberian police.

Chief Bruley explained that when Colonel Coleman visited the Brooklyn Park Police Headquarters, he was provided with some used police equipment and uniforms.

However, he said the visit did not involve the direct sale of police vehicles to the Liberia National Police.

Chief Bruley further clarified that the Brooklyn Park Police Department does not directly sell its old vehicles or other surplus properties.

According to him, when police vehicles and other equipment are no longer required by the department, they are transferred to the city’s Public Works Division, which is responsible for determining how the property is disposed of or sold.

Bruley said  in many cases, employees of the city government are given an opportunity to purchase vehicles that were previously used by the police department.

His explanation suggests that any former Brooklyn Park police vehicle that may have eventually ended up in Liberia would have had to pass through a process separate from a direct transaction between the Brooklyn Park Police Department and the Liberia National Police.

The statement from the Brooklyn Park Police Chief raises questions about the specific process through which the vehicles in Liberia were acquired.

While Colonel Coleman has reportedly maintained that the vehicles were purchased from police authorities in Brooklyn Park, Chief Bruley said his department has never sold vehicles directly to the Liberia National Police.

The two accounts appear to differ on the nature of the transaction and the role played by the Brooklyn Park Police Department.

Chief Bruley’s comments, however, do not by themselves establish whether the vehicles in Liberia were previously owned or operated by the Brooklyn Park Police Department.

They instead clarify that the police department does not directly handle the sale of its surplus vehicles. If any of the vehicles were formerly part of the Brooklyn Park police fleet, determining how they were transferred, sold and eventually transported to Liberia would require documentation showing their ownership history and the parties involved in the transaction.

The controversy gained attention after questions emerged over the circumstances surrounding the vehicles and allegations that they could have been connected to a drug cartel.

Colonel Coleman subsequently offered a different explanation, saying the vehicles were purchased from police authorities in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota.

That explanation was apparently intended to clarify that the vehicles were not obtained from a drug cartel. But the latest comments from Chief Bruley have introduced another important distinction: according to the Brooklyn Park Police Department, it does not directly sell its old vehicles or surplus property.

The conflicting accounts have left unanswered questions about the identity of the actual seller or intermediary involved in the acquisition of the vehicles.

Among the issues that may require clarification are whether the vehicles were formerly part of the Brooklyn Park Police fleet.