serviceyears branch nationality birth_date residence term_end alma_mater profession battles order term_start rank name predecessor birth_place party office successor religion article_title birth_name
1985 -- 1996 sierra leone army sierra leonean 26 april 1967 newton , western area , sierra leone 16 january 1996 16 january 1996 university of warwick soldier sierra leone civil war head of state of sierra leone 29 april 1992 29 april 1992 captain valentine strasser joseph saidu momoh position created freetown , sierra leone military -rrb- junta -lrb- national provisional ruling council - nprc chairman -rrb- of the national provisional ruling council -lrb- nprc julius maada bio julius maada bio christianity valentine strasser
 valentine esegragbo melvine strasser
valentine strasser

valentine esegragbo melvine strasser -lrb- born on 26 april 1967 in freetown , sierra leone -rrb- served as head of state of sierra leone from 1992 to 1996 .
he had been a junior military officer but in 1992 , he became the world 's youngest head of state when he seized power three days after his 25th birthday .
he was the leading member in a group of six young sierra leonean soldiers who overthrew president joseph saidu momoh in the 29 april 1992 military coup .
they established a military junta called the national provisional ruling council -lrb- nprc -rrb- .
on january 1996 , after nearly four years in power , strasser was ousted in a second military coup , but this time it was his own nprc soldiers who were not satisfied with his handling of the peace process .
the coup was led by his deputy , brigadier general julius maada bio .
strasser was born and raised in the neighbourhood of allen town in the east end of sierra leone 's capital freetown to creole parents .
strasser did his secondary education at the sierra leone grammar school in freetown and graduated in 1985 at age eighteen .
while in secondary school , strasser was a gifted student in math and chemistry .
strasser enlisted in the republic of sierra leone military forces -lrb- rslmf -rrb- at age eighteen , immediately after graduating from secondary school .
he was deployed for military training as a cadet officer at the benguema military training academy in benguema , western area .
strasser later went to the united kingdom where he studied law at the university of warwick in coventry , england .
he dropped out of law school in 1998 and briefly moved to the gambia .
