Liberia: Jury Verdict Shreds Government’s Economic Sabotage Case as Tweah, Cooper Fully Clear - FrontPageAfrica

Monrovia-The government’s much-publicised economic sabotage prosecution against former officials of the administration of George Weah suffered a devastating legal blow Friday, May 8, in a stunning courtroom collapse that has sent shockwaves across Liberia, after jurors at Criminal Court “C” failed to sustain most of the state’s major allegations.

By Willie N. Tokpah

The dramatic outcome has now triggered fierce public debate over what critics are calling a politically driven prosecution that consumed months of national attention but ultimately crumbled under the weight of weak evidence, conflicting testimony, and legal uncertainty.

At the center of the case was former Finance and Development Planning Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr., whom prosecutors had portrayed as the principal architect of an alleged scheme involving over L$1 billion and US$500,000 in government security-related funds.

But in a humiliating setback for state prosecutors, Tweah was fully acquitted and discharged by Judge Ousman Feika in accordance with Liberian law after jurors returned not guilty verdicts on all counts.

Also fully cleared was G. Moses P. Cooper, former Comptroller of the Financial Intelligence Agency, who walked free after the jury found him not guilty on every charge brought against him.

The prosecution had accused the defendants of economic sabotage, theft of property, money laundering, criminal conspiracy, criminal facilitation, misuse of public money, and fraud tied to confidential security expenditures allegedly processed through FIA accounts.

However, after months of contentious courtroom proceedings, jurors rejected substantial portions of the government’s allegations, leaving the state’s flagship anti-corruption case severely damaged.

FULL ACQUITTALS DEAL MAJOR BLOW TO PROSECUTION

For Samuel D. Tweah Jr.
Economic Sabotage, NOT GUILTY
Theft of Property, NOT GUILTY
Money Laundering, NOT GUILTY
Criminal Facilitation, NOT GUILTY
Criminal Conspiracy, NOT GUILTY
For D. Moses P. Cooper
Economic Sabotage, NOT GUILTY
Theft of Property, NOT GUILTY
Money Laundering, NOT GUILTY
Criminal Facilitation, NOT GUILTY
Criminal Conspiracy, NOT GUILTY
Their complete acquittal now stands as one of the most serious legal embarrassments for the government since launching its aggressive anti-corruption campaign against former officials of the Weah administration.

HUNG VERDICTS COMPLICATE CASE

The case took another dramatic twist when jurors failed to reach unanimous decisions on several major charges against other defendants, resulting in multiple hung verdicts and court-ordered retrials.

For Jefferson Karmoh
Jefferson Karmoh was adjudged on the following,
Theft of Property, HUNG VERDICT,
Money Laundering, NOT GUILTY,
Criminal Facilitation, GUILTY,
Criminal Conspiracy, GUILTY.

The court ordered a retrial on the theft of property count while maintaining the guilty verdicts for criminal facilitation and conspiracy on the official court record.

Former Solicitor General Cllr. Nyanti Tuan
Nyanti Tuan was adjudged on the following, Economic Sabotage, HUNG VERDICT,
Money Laundering, HUNG VERDICT, Theft of Property, GUILTY,
Criminal Facilitation, GUILTY
Criminal Conspiracy, GUILTY.

The court maintained the guilty verdicts while ordering retrial proceedings on the unresolved counts.

For Stanley S. Ford
Stanley S. Ford, former head of the Financial Intelligence Agency, was adjudged on the following, Theft of Property, HUNG VERDICT,
Money Laundering, HUNG VERDICT,
Criminal Facilitation, GUILTY
Criminal Conspiracy, GUILTY.

The court preserved the existing guilty findings.

PROSECUTION CASE UNDER FIRE

Friday’s outcome has intensified criticism that the government overreached in its effort to criminalize actions connected to national security operations carried out under the previous administration.

Throughout the proceedings, defense lawyers repeatedly argued that the disputed transactions were lawful security expenditures conducted under executive authority and protected state operations.

Defense attorneys maintained that prosecutors failed to prove that any of the accused officials personally stole public funds, diverted money into private accounts, or unlawfully enriched themselves.

Instead, much of the prosecution’s case reportedly revolved around disputed accounting procedures, administrative documentation, and questions surrounding authorization protocols tied to confidential security spending.

“This prosecution was built more on politics than proof,” one defense lawyer argued during final submissions, accusing the government of attempting to transform policy and administrative disagreements into criminal conduct.

Legal observers following the proceedings noted that prosecutors struggled throughout the trial to directly establish criminal intent against several of the accused, particularly Tweah and Cooper, whose complete acquittals now raise troubling questions about the state’s investigative standards.

The ruling has also fueled broader national concerns over whether anti-corruption institutions are increasingly being used as political weapons against opponents of the current administration.

The case previously reached the Supreme Court after defense lawyers challenged aspects of the prosecution and questioned the constitutional authority underpinning parts of the state’s legal arguments.

Although the Supreme Court permitted the trial to continue, Friday’s fractured verdict now leaves the government politically bruised and legally exposed after failing to secure sweeping convictions in what had been promoted as a landmark anti-graft prosecution.

APPEALS EXPECTED

Court records indicate that both prosecution and defense lawyers immediately noted exceptions to portions of the verdict.

State prosecutors reportedly excepted to the acquittals and hung verdicts on several major counts, while defense lawyers also objected to portions of the guilty verdicts returned against defendants including Tuan and Karmoh.

The defense specifically challenged the guilty findings entered against Tuan for theft of property and conspiracy, as well as the guilty verdicts against Karmoh for criminal facilitation and conspiracy.

The legal battle is therefore far from over, with appeals and retrial proceedings now expected to dominate the next phase of the politically explosive case.

Outside the courthouse, emotional scenes unfolded as supporters of the former officials erupted in celebration, chanting and applauding after the acquittals were announced.

For many supporters of the accused, Friday’s verdict represented not merely a legal victory, but a public repudiation of what they view as a calculated political campaign aimed at humiliating and criminalizing officials of the former government.

For the Liberian government, however, the ruling stands as a painful judicial reckoning, one that has now transformed its headline anti-corruption prosecution into a deeply controversial national controversy marked by acquittals, hung juries, retrials, and mounting accusations of political persecution.

On the guilty verdicts returned by the jury, Judge Ousman Feika said he will make a judgment on a date that will be determined by the court.