[3] During his father's presidency, he became the commander of the infamously violent Anti-Terrorist Unit (ATU), commonly known in Liberia as the "Demon Forces".

Fearful of Taylor's attempting to claim custody of Emmanuel, his mother had his name legally changed to Roy Belfast Jr., the name of her husband.

Afterward, Emmanuel moved to Liberia to live with his father, who in turn enrolled him in the Accra Academy, an elite boarding school in Ghana.

[3] He had exposure to the First Liberian Civil War, spending time with Bill Horace whose military unit was known for crucifixions and executions.

[3] According to U.S. prosecutors, when in Liberia, Emmanuel headed the "Demon Forces", a paramilitary, anti-terrorism security unit for Charles Taylor.

[9] Elise Keppler, a counsel for the International Justice Program of Human Rights Watch, said that the "Demon Forces" "did things like beating people to death, burying them alive, rape – the most horrible kind of war crimes.

"[7][12] That same day, the World Organization for Human Rights USA filed a civil suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida on behalf of five of Taylor Jr.'s victims pursuant to the Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victims Protection Act.

[15] As of 2019 he, under the name Roy M Belfast Jr. (Bureau of Prisons (BOP)#76556-004), is serving his sentence at the United States Penitentiary in Lee County, Virginia.