Published: June 25, 2025
Temple of Justice, Monrovia — The Supreme Court of Liberia has scheduled July 1, 2025, to hear arguments in the high-profile corruption case involving former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah and four former officials of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government.
The case, which began during the February Term of Criminal Court “C,” was halted after the defendants filed a writ of prohibition challenging a ruling by Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie, who had denied a motion to dismiss the indictment. The Supreme Court later accepted the writ, pausing all proceedings.
In a formal citation issued by the Court, parties were notified that the “Honorable Supreme Court of the Republic of Liberia will hear argument in said cause of action on the 1st day of July A.D. 2025, at the hour of 11:00 a.m.”
Judge Willie, who was appointed to preside over the case, had ruled in February that the indictment could not be dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. He maintained that the prosecution deserved the opportunity to present its evidence.
“In view of the facts, circumstances, and laws cited hereinabove, this case cannot be dismissed,” Judge Willie wrote. “The motion to dismiss is hereby denied and the case is ordered to proceed forthwith.”
The case centers on allegations of economic sabotage involving the unauthorized transfer of more than L$1 billion and US$500,000 from the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP) to the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA), allegedly without proper authorization or national security justification.
In their motion to dismiss, the defendants argued that they were acting under presidential authority and were therefore immune from prosecution, citing Article 61 of the 1986 Constitution and the National Security Reform and Intelligence Act (NSRI Act).
Judge Willie disagreed.
He ruled that while the NSRI Act provides certain immunities for security actors, it also imposes limitations. He cited Section 7(c), which states that NSRI members are not exempt from legally mandated accounting within the Government of Liberia.
“Why are they not exempt?” Judge Willie asked rhetorically. “Because there may be instances of impropriety, and when that happens, the only place to address such is the Court—specifically Criminal Court ‘C’ in Montserrado County.”
He further cited Section 11(d) of the NSRI Act, which states that funds can only be spent outside normal expenditure laws if used for vital national security interests—unless otherwise prohibited by law.
“This means NSRI members are only immune when acting within the confines of national security interests,” the judge said. “Otherwise, they are subject to prosecution.”
Judge Willie also referenced Section 67.8 of the Financial Intelligence Agency Act of 2022, which offers immunity only for acts performed in good faith and does not extend to gross negligence, intentional wrongdoing, or corruption.
Using a legal analogy, he described the FIA Act as a subset of the broader NSRI Act, emphasizing that no official is immune from prosecution for actions that fall outside the legal scope of their mandate.
“While these institutions enjoy certain immunities, those immunities are not absolute,” Willie wrote. “When public officials act outside of the law, they must answer before a court of law.”
On the second key issue—whether the defendants could invoke presidential privilege under Article 61—Judge Willie again ruled in the negative.
Article 61 provides immunity for the President of Liberia from any legal action during his time in office. However, it does not extend that immunity to agents or appointees.
“The argument that prosecuting the defendants is tantamount to prosecuting the President is fundamentally flawed,” Judge Willie wrote.
According to the indictment issued by the Montserrado County Grand Jury on September 5, 2024, between September 8 and 21, 2023, approximately L$1,055,152,540 and US$500,000 were transferred from the Central Bank of Liberia to FIA accounts, allegedly on the instruction of Co-Defendant Tweah.
The indictment claims there is no evidence of a formal request or authorization from the National Joint Security, the NSC, or the President to justify the transfers. It also accuses then-Acting Justice Minister Cllr. Nyenati Tuan of conspiring with Tweah to carry out the illegal transaction.
Judge Willie emphasized that such actions—conducted without documented approval—fall outside the protective scope of Article 61 and the NSRI Act, thereby warranting prosecution.
“Therefore, they must answer to the charges, and it is up to the prosecution to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt,” he concluded.
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