Monrovia – Former Central Bank of Liberia Governor Mr. J. Milton Weeks walked out of the Monrovia Central Prison a little over an hour after Deputy Governor Charles Sirleaf was released with conditions Friday.
Bettie K. Johnson-Mbayo, [email protected]
Mr. Weeks’ release followed a real property bond filed Tuesday before Presiding Judge Boima Kontoe, Criminal Court ‘C’.
The bond was granted by Judge Kontoe late Friday upon which the former governor was released.
According to Judge Kontoe Mr. Weeks has been asked not to leave the bailiwick of Montserrado County without the court’s consent.
Mr. Weeks turned himself to Liberia National Police on Friday, March 1, while Richard Walker, Director for Operations, and Joseph Dennis, Deputy Director for Internal Audit, were also arrested and detained at the Monrovia Central Prison. All three- Richard Walker, Joseph Dennis and Hagba are still being held behind the walls of the Central Prison after failing to secure criminal bond.
The court also ordered the former CBL boss to report to the court twice after every two weeks.
Like Weeks, Mr. Sirleaf has also been ordered to surrender his travel documents to the court on grounds that he does not leave the country.
Although the two are out of prison, state lawyers are yet to object to the insurance and property bond filed by the duo.
Mr. Sirleaf was arrested along with Dorbor Hagba also of the CBL while the pair was at work on Thursday, February 28.
Judge Boima Kontoe has ordered Mr. Weeks not to leave the bailiwick of Montserrado County without the court’s consent. The court also ordered the former CBL boss to report to the court twice after every two weeks.
Mr. Weeks turned himself to Liberia National Police on Friday, March 1, while Richard Walker, Director for Operations, and Joseph Dennis, Deputy Director for Internal Audit, were also arrested and detained at the Monrovia Central Prison. All three- Richard Walker, Joseph Dennis and Hagba are still being held behind the walls of the Central Prison after failing to secure criminal bond.
All five have been indicted by the Grand Jury of Montserrado County for multiple crimes including economic sabotage and misappropriation of public funds following the released reports of two separate investigations into the missing L$16 billion. If found guilty of economic sabotage, a felony of the first degree which is in violation of Chapter 15, sub-chapter “F” Sections 15.81 (a) (b) (c) and 15.82 (b)(c) of the New Penal Law of Liberia.
The CBL executives were arrested following last week’s release of the USAID-backed Kroll report and the report by the Special Presidential Task Force which uncovered wide-range of discrepancies in the missing Liberian dollars saga and the controversial disbursement of US$25 million intended for infusion in the economy to curb the rising exchange rate between the Liberian and US dollar.
Kroll recommended that given the many discrepancies noted in the manner in which the mop-up exercise was conducted in relation to the infusion of the US$25 Million into the Liberian economy; and the scope, time and financial resource limitations encountered by the PIT-TC, the investigation recommends that the TEMT and the Central Bank of Liberia put a halt to the exercise, and that a forensic investigation of the entire mop-up exercise be conducted without any delay.
On Thursday President George Manneh Weah instructed the General Auditing Commission to investigate the findings of both reports amid pressure for the president to also act against his controversial Finance and Economic Development Minister Samuel D. Tweah and current CBL governor Nathaniel Patray who are also named in the reports.