Kennedy L. Yangian [email protected]
Monrovia-The international NGO Global Witness 2016 Report on Liberia linked several current and past government officials including Grand Cape Mount Senator Varney Sherman and House Speaker Alex Tyler of bribery in an attempt to award a concession contract to a British Company, Sable Mining.
A Special Presidential Task Force was set up by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to probe the report and bring forth for prosecution those found connected to the saga.
On May 25, 2016 the Task Force indicted two lawmakers Senator Sherman and House of Representatives Speaker Alex Tyler along with others on multiple criminal offences including, bribery, criminal conspiracy, economic sabotage, criminal solicitation and facilitation.
But lawyers representing the Cape Mount County Senator have been using every legal means to ensure that the indictment and charges against him are quashed and dismissed.
After challenging two other writs of subpoena duces tecum whose ruling is pending before the Criminal Court “C” and that of the Supreme Court filed by the Special Presidential Taskforce to have Senator Sherman’s bank statements’ at several local banks surrendered to the court, Sherman’s lawyers have again moved by filing another motion not only to dismiss the indictment against him but to quash the charges.
The motion signed by six of Senator Sherman’s eight lawyers was filed Monday to the Criminal Court “C” at the Temple of Justice under the caption: “motion to dismiss and quash charges growing out of the case : Republic of Liberia plaintiff versus Varney Sherman, E.C.B. Jones, Christopher Onanuga, Alex Tyler and the Sable Mining, defendants”.
The lawyers are: Cllrs. Moses Paegar, Albert Sims, Musah Dean, Golda Elliot, Cyril Jones, Kron Yangbe and Attys. Ousima Fekia and Luther Yorfee.
The indictment against Senator Sherman alleged that between the period August 2010 and 2011 or thereabout movant ( Sherman) as a team through various communications and each being strategically placed in various positions in Government with the support of Sable Mining did criminally strategize and purposely, willfully, intentionally request and was given more than US$900,000 to perform their official duties.
Factual defect
However, in the motion to dismiss the charges against Senator Sherman, the lawyers are arguing that there is a factual defect in the indictment due to uncertainty about alleged crime in 2011.
“Codefendant/ movant submits and says that the law in this jurisdiction hoary with age is that an indictment must state with particularity, specificity and certainty, the time, place, circumstances and conditions of committing or attempting to commit a criminal act to enable the defendant defend himself against the charge” the motion to dismiss and quash the indictment against senator Sherman stated.
Senator Sherman’s lawyers continued in the motion to dismiss that as to the two witnesses who testified before the Grand Jury of Montserrado County not one of them testified to his certain knowledge of the offenses listed in the indictment but rather to a second-hand account of what he read in the Global Witness Report.
“Co-defendant movants therefore prays your honor to dismiss the indictment as to crimes allegedly committed in 2011 when no such alleged crimes are stated or described either in the indictment itself” the motion continued.
State lawyers are yet to respond to the motion filed on Monday, June 27, 2016 though they have three working days to do so as required by law.