A Pastor Found A Massive Diamond. Now He Hopes It Will Help His Country.
Emmanuel Momoh
Now  Momoh  watched as the gem found in from a field not far from  his  tin-roof room home was snapped up for $6 536 360.
Then  Momoh  did something unprecedented:  he  decided to hand it over to the government.  He  figured the money made on selling the stone would be used for public services in a country recently devastated by Ebola and mudslides . For weeks afterwards in Sierra Leone  websites and bars alike in Sierra Leone were abuzz with talk of the giant diamond. “I don't know whether [ he ’s] being honest or naïve ” one poster wrote on Facebook. “But I seriously doubt whether [President Ernest Bai] Koroma will care to share the proceeds with his kitchen cabinet.”
The dealer  a man with years of experience in the murky world of diamond trading  became the first of several who would try to persuade  Momoh  to smuggle the gem on the black market  and rake in tens of thousands of dollars — possibly more — for  himself .  Momoh  considered the proposal.  His  wife and three kids were waiting back home in Koryadu  a village so poor it has no running water  electricity or paved roads  despite literally sitting on diamond fields. .
 Emmanuel Momoh   a tall and soft-spoken pastor from Sierra Leone who had travelled outside  his  country for the first time  was following nervously as some 70 bids came in online and in phone calls. Going under the hammer was a massive gem called the “Peace Diamond ” which was expected to fetch tens of millions of dollars.  Momoh  had briefly been its owner.
After years of struggling to feed  his  family on a paltry income as an evangelical preacher (and selling peanuts as a side business)   Momoh  applied for a mining license in 2012. In Sierra Leone’s diamond-rich eastern region  villagers often pool their money into artisanal mines. Few  though  strike it lucky in the unregulated and often-dangerous informal mines.  Momoh ’s team dredged up a few carats a month  making precious little profits.
The country’s gems were once at the heart of Sierra Leone’s brutal war that ended in 2002.  Momoh  lived through the decade-long conflict waged over who would control mineral-rich fields like the ones where  his  diggers made their lucky find. The stones found there were smuggled across the borders by rebels in exchange for arms and ammunitions. The digging was carried out by an enslaved population under threat of death by the rebels  earning them the dark nickname “blood diamonds” and eventually setting off an international backlash against their sale.
Artisanal mining — mining without heavy equipment — is back breaking work. Using spades  crowbars  and pick axes  diggers sift through several tons of earth to find a single carat of diamonds. The physical labor takes a toll  with miners often suffering hernias  exhaustion and exposure to malaria and parasites by drinking from polluted streams.  Momoh  often paid their medical bills  a drain  he  could barely afford.
By March this year   he ’d told  his  wife  he  was considering letting  his  diggers go. “I told my wife  it’s very difficult to balance between our family needs and those of workers. It’s challenging. You’re looking for something you don’t know if you’ll ever find.”
So when a knock came on his door on the evening of March 13   Momoh  hoped there hadn’t been an accident. Four dust-covered workers walked into  his  living room. One of them  a man called Komba Johnbull  said  he  first needed 800 000 leones — roughly $100 and easily an entire month’s wage. “ He  said  ‘I think something important has happened. But before I tell you  you have to give me 800 000 leones ’”  Momoh  recalled. “I said  ‘what do you mean  what are you talking about?’”
As the manager and financial supporter of the group   Momoh  was the legal owner of anything discovered. But tradition dictates that diggers are entitled to a dash  or stipend  from their financier when they make a significant find. Quickly realizing it must be big news to require such a hefty dash   Momoh  once again scraped together the cash and gave it to  his  worker.
 He  was stunned at the gem that was handed over to  him .
“The reaction was — I mean  everyone was just… ”  he  faltered  trying to summon the words. “Every one of us was very happy. We knew it was special.”
Still  at that point no one in the room realized quite how big a find they had on their hands. Diamonds in Sierra Leone are some of the highest quality in the world  typically so clear and transparent that they’re known as “glasses.” The rock in front of  Momoh  was orange-hued  with tiny red speckles.
 Momoh  decided to take it to a diamond dealer in Kono who was known for paying cash upfront with minimal fuss. Miners are legally allowed to sell smaller diamonds  though larger ones have to be handed over to the government  who then share a fraction of the final sale price with the original owners.
The dealer immediately suggested a different option: without alerting anyone else  they could find a buyer and share the money between themselves. “He said  there’s no need to sell this. If you take this diamond to the government  you will not get anything out of it ”  Momoh  recalled.
The dealer refused to hand back the diamond as he desperately tried to convince  Momoh  to follow his plan. The discussion dragged on for hours. “It was very difficult to remove that diamond from the Lebanese [dealer]. We stayed four or five hours in that office that night  until finally we are able to convince  him  to bring that diamond out.”
Now  Momoh  watched as the gem found in from a field not far from  his  tin-roof room home was snapped up for $6 536 360.
Then  Momoh  did something unprecedented:  he  decided to hand it over to the government.  He  figured the money made on selling the stone would be used for public services in a country recently devastated by Ebola and mudslides . For weeks afterwards in Sierra Leone  websites and bars alike in Sierra Leone were abuzz with talk of the giant diamond. “I don't know whether [ he ’s] being honest or naïve ” one poster wrote on Facebook. “But I seriously doubt whether [President Ernest Bai] Koroma will care to share the proceeds with his kitchen cabinet.”
The dealer  a man with years of experience in the murky world of diamond trading  became the first of several who would try to persuade  Momoh  to smuggle the gem on the black market  and rake in tens of thousands of dollars — possibly more — for  himself .  Momoh  considered the proposal.  His  wife and three kids were waiting back home in Koryadu  a village so poor it has no running water  electricity or paved roads  despite literally sitting on diamond fields. .
 [TGT]   a tall and soft-spoken pastor from Sierra Leone who had travelled outside  [TGT]  country for the first time  was following nervously as some 70 bids came in online and in phone calls. Going under the hammer was a massive gem called the “Peace Diamond ” which was expected to fetch tens of millions of dollars.  Momoh  had briefly been its owner.
After years of struggling to feed  his  family on a paltry income as an evangelical preacher (and selling peanuts as a side business)   Momoh  applied for a mining license in 2012. In Sierra Leone’s diamond-rich eastern region  villagers often pool their money into artisanal mines. Few  though  strike it lucky in the unregulated and often-dangerous informal mines.  Momoh ’s team dredged up a few carats a month  making precious little profits.
The country’s gems were once at the heart of Sierra Leone’s brutal war that ended in 2002.  Momoh  lived through the decade-long conflict waged over who would control mineral-rich fields like the ones where  his  diggers made their lucky find. The stones found there were smuggled across the borders by rebels in exchange for arms and ammunitions. The digging was carried out by an enslaved population under threat of death by the rebels  earning them the dark nickname “blood diamonds” and eventually setting off an international backlash against their sale.
Artisanal mining — mining without heavy equipment — is back breaking work. Using spades  crowbars  and pick axes  diggers sift through several tons of earth to find a single carat of diamonds. The physical labor takes a toll  with miners often suffering hernias  exhaustion and exposure to malaria and parasites by drinking from polluted streams.  Momoh  often paid their medical bills  a drain  he  could barely afford.
By March this year   he ’d told  his  wife  he  was considering letting  his  diggers go. “I told my wife  it’s very difficult to balance between our family needs and those of workers. It’s challenging. You’re looking for something you don’t know if you’ll ever find.”
So when a knock came on his door on the evening of March 13   Momoh  hoped there hadn’t been an accident. Four dust-covered workers walked into  his  living room. One of them  a man called Komba Johnbull  said  he  first needed 800 000 leones — roughly $100 and easily an entire month’s wage. “ He  said  ‘I think something important has happened. But before I tell you  you have to give me 800 000 leones ’”  Momoh  recalled. “I said  ‘what do you mean  what are you talking about?’”
As the manager and financial supporter of the group   Momoh  was the legal owner of anything discovered. But tradition dictates that diggers are entitled to a dash  or stipend  from their financier when they make a significant find. Quickly realizing it must be big news to require such a hefty dash   Momoh  once again scraped together the cash and gave it to  his  worker.
 He  was stunned at the gem that was handed over to  him .
“The reaction was — I mean  everyone was just… ”  he  faltered  trying to summon the words. “Every one of us was very happy. We knew it was special.”
Still  at that point no one in the room realized quite how big a find they had on their hands. Diamonds in Sierra Leone are some of the highest quality in the world  typically so clear and transparent that they’re known as “glasses.” The rock in front of  Momoh  was orange-hued  with tiny red speckles.
 Momoh  decided to take it to a diamond dealer in Kono who was known for paying cash upfront with minimal fuss. Miners are legally allowed to sell smaller diamonds  though larger ones have to be handed over to the government  who then share a fraction of the final sale price with the original owners.
The dealer immediately suggested a different option: without alerting anyone else  they could find a buyer and share the money between themselves. “He said  there’s no need to sell this. If you take this diamond to the government  you will not get anything out of it ”  Momoh  recalled.
The dealer refused to hand back the diamond as he desperately tried to convince  Momoh  to follow his plan. The discussion dragged on for hours. “It was very difficult to remove that diamond from the Lebanese [dealer]. We stayed four or five hours in that office that night  until finally we are able to convince  him  to bring that diamond out.”