Investigators from UN-backed court search Taylor's properties in Monrovia

Investigators from the Special Court for Sierra Leone have searched the properties of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, who has been indicted by the court on war crimes charges.

The search was conducted jointly by investigators from the Court's prosecutors' office, officers of the UN Mission in Liberia's (UNMIL) International Police Service and security officers from Monrovia city court.

The Special Court, set up through an agreement between the UN and Sierra Leone to try those people who bear "the greatest responsibility" for atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's civil war, indicted Mr. Taylor on 7 March 2003.

The former leader - he resigned in August and went into exile in Nigeria under an international deal - is charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and terrorism in Sierra Leone since 30 November 1996.