Liberia’s warlord-turned-senator Prince Johnson dies at 72

Liberian senator Prince Johnson gestures during an interview in Monrovia, Liberia (AP)

Prince Johnson, the Liberian former warlord and senator whose brutal tactics shocked the world, has died at the age of 72, authorities have said.

Johnson, who infamously videotaped himself drinking Budweiser as his men cut off the ears of the nation’s former president, remained active in politics after the civil war ended and was elected senator in 2006.