Monrovia – Days after the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) concluded its investigation into the alleged corruption scandal at the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA), the grand jury of Montserrado County, seated at Criminal Court ‘A’, has reindicted five former officials of President George Weah’s administration.
By: Victoria G. Wesseh
These officials will face trial before the First Judicial Circuit, Criminal Court, under the supervision of Judge Blamo Dixon.
The jury’s decision followed a thorough review of evidence, which indicated sufficient grounds to charge six individuals, including former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah, former Acting Justice Minister Cllr. Nyanti Tuan, former Solicitor General Stanley S. Ford, former Director General of the FIA D. Moses P. Cooper, and former National Security Advisor Jefferson Karmoh. They are accused of various crimes including Economic Sabotage, Theft of Property, Money Laundering, Criminal Facilitation, and Criminal Conspiracy.
The indictment has been transferred to Criminal Court ‘C’, which has the jurisdiction to prosecute the alleged crimes.
Upon receiving the indictment, the court swiftly ordered the arrest of three of the five defendants, including Tuan, Cooper, and Karmoh, on Tuesday, September 9. All three defendants surrendered voluntarily. After securing a criminal appearance bond, they were released, with their lawyers, Cllr. James Kumeh and Cllr. Wiefueh Sayeh, assuring the court that the defendants would appear whenever summoned.
Details of the Indictment
According to the indictment, former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah, while serving in his official capacity, knowingly authorized the illegal transfer of LS1,055,152,540 (One Billion, Fifty-five Million, One Hundred and Fifty-two Thousand, Five Hundred and Forty Liberian Dollars) and US$500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) to the operational accounts of the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA). These funds were not requested by the National Joint Security.
The indictment claims that Tweah conspired with Cllr. Nyanti Tuan, then Acting Minister of Justice and Chairman of the National Joint Security, to facilitate the illegal transfer of these funds. The funds were later withdrawn from the FIA’s accounts by D. Moses P. Cooper, the then Acting Financial Controller of the FIA.
Financial Irregularities
Court documents allege on September 22, 2023, US$500,000 was transferred to the FIA’s United States Dollar operational account at the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) at the direction of Tweah. The same day, Cooper withdrew the full amount.
Additionally, between September 8 and 21, 2023, LS1,055,152,540 was transferred to the FIA’s Liberian Dollar operational account, also on Tweah’s orders. By October 17, 2023, Cooper had withdrawn all but LS7,500 of the funds.
The indictment highlights despite confirming that the National Joint Security received the funds, Cllr. Nyanti Tuan failed to account for how the money was distributed or expended. Instead, Tuan allegedly relied on consultations with Jefferson Karmoh, then National Security Advisor to the President.
Questionable Admittance of the FIA
On September 5, 2023, Co-defendant Tuan, in his capacity as Acting Minister of Justice, wrote to Stanley S. Ford, Director General of the FIA, informing him that the FIA had been designated to handle funds for the National Joint Security. However, the investigation found no documentary evidence supporting the FIA’s admittance into the National Joint Security. Contrary to claims by Karmoh that the FIA had requested admittance through the Ministry of Justice, no such request was found.
The investigation also found no evidence of any directive from the Ministry of Justice authorizing the FIA’s involvement, raising further suspicions about the motives and actions of the officials involved.
The trial is expected to shed light on the extent of the alleged corruption and provide accountability for the missing funds.
