Liberia: Defense Lawyer Sues GT Bank for Damages in the Tone of US$1.5 Million

Monrovia – Lawyer representing Sie Edward Freeman has filed a US$1.5 million in damages against the Guarantee Trust Bank and its suspended manager for injury resulting from an assault.

Report by Augustine T. Tweh [email protected]

Cllr. Arthur Johnson filed the suit against the GT Bank and its former Managing Director Ayodeji Bejide at the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court on behalf of his client at the Civil Law Court on Tuesday, October 2, 2018, citing 21 counts in the writ entitled “Action of Damages for Wrong”

The writ states that the injury caused to the client based on the negligence of the employee (Ayodeji Bejide) is tantamount to the employer (GT Bank) if the relationship of principle-agent exists at the time of the act and in respect to the transaction out of which the injury arose.

“Plaintiff says the injuries, humiliation and embarrassments caused by 2nd defendant Bejide were done during the normal course of duty to the 1st defendant GT Bank. Bejide was engaged in an assignment on the Bank’s premise and said meeting was proper, necessary, usual and incidental to accomplishing the aims of 1st defendant GT Bank,” states the Action of Damage For Wrong.

“Plaintiff says that the act of the 2nd defendant imposes vicarious liability on the 1st defendant and both must be held joint and severally liable for the injuries, humiliation and embarrassment suffered by the plaintiff at the time of the incident.”

Cllr. Johnson further noted in the writ that GT Bank being fully aware of the conduct of its employee action as against his client, failed and neglected to apology wrong done, which he describes as “intentional wrong” for which both GT Bank and Ayodeji Bejide should be punished in punitive damages for their conduct.

The defense counsel said his client has become a laughing stock and an object of mockery on social media and been labelled as “Calm Down”, an alleged response to him by Bejide after the commission of the act.

Cllr. Johnson said his client has sought the intervention and expertise of a Psychiatrist/Psychosocial counselor to obtain therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and he currently attends Psycho-sociological counseling due to the injuries he sustained.

“Plaintiff says that this action of damages for wrong will lie because of the injuries sustained, emotional distress, mental anguish, frustration, mockery, embarrassment, pain and suffering he has and is still enduring. Plaintiff says that 1st defendant GT Bank and 2nd defendant Ayodeji Bejide are jointly and severally liable because (1) at the time of the incident, 2nd defendant Ayodeji Bejide was an employee of the 1st defendant GT Bank and (2) the 2nd defendant was acting within the scope of his employment when the act occurred,” the counts read.

Johnson reiterated that the GT Bank is responsible for the wrongful action of the former manager under the doctrine of respondent superior, meaning that the employer is always responsible for the conduct of their employee when the employee is performing an action during his duty.

“We feel that this action is an action of wrong, it was a tortured act and under our laws the bank should be held responsible and also its former manager should be responsible for their wrongful conduct. This will serve as a deterrence in this country that anyone comes in this country and disrespect and treat inhumanely our Liberian workers,” Cllr. Johnson after submitting the writ.

He added that because of the mockery and injuries, his client name has been changed from Sie Edward freeman to Calm Down, holding the bank responsible for what he described under the law as an act of omission, meaning the bank failure to act (in this instance) constitute a violation.

“We are not going to let this go free like that, we are going to fight to see the end to it. That’s why filed this civil action for compensatory damages and punitive damages. And we also have what we call specific damages, what he is spending to take on his treatment, those are the damages that we are claiming in the tone of US$1.5 million,” he added.

This lawsuit comes amid an aggravated assault suit already filed by the State against Bejide for his action against Freeman. Bejide, now a suspended manager of the GT Bank, was then charged by the Liberia National Police with the crime of aggravated assault and forwarded to court for allegedly assaulting Freeman, another employee of GT Bank.

But Defendant Bejide was granted a medical leave by the Monrovia City Court at the Temple of Justice and has since left the country with report that he has gone to Mali FrontPageAfrica has reliably learned.

When contacted Tuesday, October 2, Magistrate Kennedy Peabody confirmed the report, stating that the court has granted the suspended Bank Manager after his lawyer (name not disclosed) had written the court requesting the court to grant his client a medical leave.

Magistrate Peabody went on to say that the court decided to grant the medical leave to the defendant because the defendant had filed a valid criminal insurance bond of US$50,000 filed on his behalf by the Insurance Company of Africa that far exceeded the actual amount of US$1,000 bond needed as the legal requirement for the crime of aggravated assault.

Meanwhile, following the filing of the Action of the Damages for Wrong, Cllr. Johnson frowned on the Monrovia City Court for granting defendant Bejide medical leave without calling for a hearing for determination in the matter.

“I think there should have been a hearing for the determination so that other people should the notice. But to say that you are going for medical leave or medical treatment, you must be able to verify that you went to all of our hospitals in this country and it is established that you cannot be treated here depending on the nature of the illness,” he said.

“But as far I am concern, I think we have the medical facilities here that could have attention to him, so I think that is left with the prosecution they will be addressing that appropriately.”