Liberia: Three Detained Central Bank Officials Released from Detention; Banned from Traveling Beyond Monrovia

Monrovia – Justice-In-Chamber Yussif Kaba Tuesday, September 3, ordered the release of three Central Bank officials, who were in detention at the Monrovia Central Prison (MCP). However, Justice Kaba issued a ban on them from traveling beyond Monrovia.

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Report by Kennedy L. Yangian, [email protected]

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The Justice-In-Chamber ordered Judge Blamo Dixon to have the three defendants released from further detention pending the determination of the petition of Writ of Certiorari filed before him.

However, included in the mandate given for the immediate release of the defendants, they were ordered to surrender their passports or all travelling documents to the Sheriff of the Criminal Court “C” at the Temple of Justice where their trial is pending. They were told not go beyond the cities of Brewerville and Paynesville and they are to report to the Office of the Sheriff on Friday of each week around 3 p.m.

The Writ of Certiorari, for which the three defendants were released, was filed by Defense Counsel, Cllr. Abraham Sillah of the Heritage Partner Law Firm against Judge Blamo August 26, 2019 ruling to have the three Defendants, Milton Weeks, Dorbor Hagba and Richard Walker, re-incarcerated at the Monrovia Central Prison and have Charles Sirleaf and Joseph Dennis released on medical grounds.

The Judge’s decision grew out of a heated argument between the defense and prosecution over the criminal appearance bonds of the five indicted Central Bank officials after state prosecutors introduced a new charge of money laundering against them. They had earlier been charged with Economic Sabotage, Criminal Facilitation and Conspiracy.

“The principal amount in the two indictments against the defendants being L$2,645,000,000 multiply by two will be L$5,290,000,000 for the joint bond for the five defendants when that amount is divided by five each defendant is entitled to post a bond of L$1,058,000,000 on an individual basis,” ruled Judge Blamo.

But Defense Counsel Sillah had contended in his Writ of Certiorari to the Justice –In-Chamber that the defendants were arrested, indicted and released on a bail bond with all travel documents being seized and in the possession of the court therefore imposing a new bond for a new charge in such a high amount was illegal on the part of the Judge and therefore wanted the Justice to review and correct the Judge’s ruling terming it as illegal.

The five Central Bank officials — former Executive Governor Milton Weeks, Deputy Governor for Operations Charles Sirleaf, Director of Finance Department Richard Walker, Director of Operations Joseph Dennis and Deputy Director Internal Audit were indicted on March 4, 2019 by the Grand Jury of Montserrado County on charges of Economic Sabotage, Criminal Conspiracy and Facilitation and lately money laundering but pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Their indictment grew out of a Presidential Investigative Team (PIT) set up to investigate the alleged missing L$16 billion printed by the Crane Currency of Sweden and brought into the country.

The PIT had accused the defendants of alleged printing of L$2,645,000,000 of the missing L$16 B Liberian bank notes brought into the country in 2016.