Court to also rule on FDA officials’ $6M forestry fraud appeal as it clears 55 cases before term’s end. The Supreme Court will this week rule on a bid by former House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa and three sitting lawmakers to overturn a judge’s decision to disband the jury in the Capitol Building arson case, one of 55 judgments the Court is set to deliver as it winds down its term.
By Rodney D. Sieh, [email protected]
MONROVIA — The Supreme Court of Liberia is set to render final judgments this week in several high-profile criminal cases involving past and present government officials, in what promises to be one of the most consequential weeks for the nation’s judiciary this term.
Chief among them is the long-running Capitol Building arson case, in which former House Speaker Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa and Representatives Dixon W. Seboe, Abu B. Kamara, and K. Jacob C. B. Debee stand accused. Chief Justice Yamie Quiqui Gbeisay, Sr. is expected to deliver the ruling on Friday, August 28, at 11:00 a.m.
At issue is a petition for a writ of prohibition filed by defense lawyers challenging a decision by Criminal Court “A” Judge Roosevelt Willie to disband the jury panel empaneled to hear the case. The defense argues the move was unlawful and prejudicial to their clients’ constitutional rights, and is asking the Supreme Court to block the case from proceeding under a newly constituted jury.
A Case Nearly Two Years In The Making
The arson case stems from the December 18, 2024, fire that gutted key sections of the Capitol Building, including the joint chambers, the legislative archives, and electoral infrastructure, causing damage estimated at $8.6 million. A Special Grand Jury for Montserrado County later indicted Koffa alongside more than a dozen others, including sitting Representatives Seboe, Kamara, and Debee, as well as several former staffers of the Speaker’s office, on a sweeping list of charges that includes arson, criminal conspiracy, attempted murder, criminal solicitation, facilitation, and the release of destructive forces.
Koffa has consistently denied any wrongdoing, describing the case as a politically motivated attempt to damage his reputation. His attorneys have argued that the state’s case against him rests on circumstantial evidence, including phone recordings and messages allegedly showing that a co-defendant was instructed to report to Koffa’s residence shortly after the fire was set, and that two of his former staffers took part in a chat exchange discussing the incident.
The case has moved through a lengthy and, at times, contentious pretrial process. Koffa and his co-defendants spent time in detention last year over a bond dispute before being released, and the Supreme Court separately heard — and in October reserved a decision on — a defense challenge seeking to exclude key evidence, including an alleged confession and forensic data extracted from mobile phones. Friday’s ruling on the jury dispute will mark the latest, and potentially most consequential, intervention yet by the high court in the case.
FDA Officials Await Ruling On $6M Forestry Fraud Appeal
A day earlier, on Thursday, August 27, at 11:00 a.m., Associate Justice Boakai N. Kanneh will deliver judgment in a separate but equally closely watched appeal brought by former Forestry Development Authority (FDA) Managing Director Moses Wogbeh, former Technical Manager John Kanto, former Commercial Forestry Manager Janger Kamara, former Grand Bassa County Surveyor David Blayee, and former Ministry of Lands, Mines & Energy Director of Cartography Maxwell Gwee.
The five were convicted in 2015 by Criminal Court “C” Judge Peter W. Gbenewelleh on charges of economic sabotage, forgery, criminal conspiracy, and obstruction of government functions, after being found to have defrauded the Liberian government of $6 million through illegal forestry permits. They have since appealed to the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn or modify the lower court’s judgment.
A Term-Ending Docket Of 55 Cases
The two rulings are part of a packed closing docket for the Court. Between Thursday and Friday, the Supreme Court is expected to hand down a total of 55 judgments — 30 on Thursday and 25 on Friday — in cases ranging from murder to ejectment actions and debt disputes, underscoring the scale of the caseload the Court is clearing as it concludes its current judicial term.
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