Prince Johnson, a former Liberian warlord, and a  key player in the 1989-2003 back-to-back civil wars, died Thursday aged 72.

Liberia's former warlord and senator Prince Johnson, one of the main actors in the country's horrific civil wars, died at the age of 72.

Liberian former warlord Prince Johnson, who oversaw the brutal murder of former president Samuel Doe as civil wars rocked the country before later serving as a senator and political kingmaker, has died at the age of 72.

Prince Yormie Johnson, Liberian warlord-turned-politician, who became infamous for the 1990 footage of him sipping beer while the-then president was tortured nearby, has died at the age of 72.

Former Liberian warlord Prince Johnson, a key player in the country's back-to-back civil wars from 1989 to 2003, died Thursday aged 72, officials from his party and the Senate told AFP.