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The former officials are eligible for bail bonds, which, when filed, would get those detained out of the central prison while the case goes on.
By Lincoln G. Peters
Monrovia, August 2, 2024: The magisterial court in Monrovia has forwarded former President George Manneh Weah’s ex-officials to a higher court for prosecution following their indictment for multiple crimes.
The indictees include former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah, who remains out of Liberia; Weah’s former National Security Advisor, Mr. Jefferson Karmoh; Liberia’s former Acting Justice Minister, Cllr. Nyenati Tuan; former Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA) Director Mr. Stanley S. Ford; and former FIA Comptroller Mr. D. Moses P. Cooper.
Upon their arrest on Monday, July 29, 2024, Cllr. Tuan, Mr. Karmoh, and one of the FIA indictees were initially turned over to the Monrovia City Court, which later ordered their detention at the Monrovia Central Prison.
Mr. Tweah was charged in absentia, and he claimed that the writ of arrest against the past officials was a complete witch-hunt.
On Thursday, August 1, 2024, the Clerk of the Monrovia City Court, Daniel Y. McGill, wrote the Clerk of Criminal Court “A” at the Temple of Justice, forwarding the indicted former officials’ case before the higher court.
They have been indicted on charges of economic sabotage, misuse of public money, property, or record, theft and illegal disbursement and expenditure of public money, theft of property, criminal facilitation, and criminal conspiracy.
The former officials are eligible for bail bonds, which, when filed, would get those detained out of the central prison while the case goes on.
Prosecutors accused the indictees of allegedly colluding and transferring LS1,055,152,540.00 and US$5,000,000.00 from the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) to the FIA’s operational accounts.
Following the transfer of the amounts, prosecutors said the defendants subsequently withdrew the money either on the same day of the transfers or a few days after.
The former officials allegedly carried out the withdrawals without any indication or record of how the amounts were disbursed or utilized by the Joint Security of Liberia.
The Liberian government said the past officials’ actions came in complete violations of the New Penal Law of Liberia. Prosecutors said the defendants’ action was unlawful, wicked, illegal, and intentional.
