MONROVIA, Liberia — The highly anticipated corruption trial involving former Finance and Development Planning Minister Samuel D. Tweah and four other former government officials is scheduled to commence on today, Thursday, March 12, before Criminal Court “C” at the Temple of Justice in Monrovia.
State prosecutors allege that the defendants misapplied approximately US$6.2 million in public funds, a case that has drawn significant national attention due to the senior positions previously held by those charged.
The defendants earlier attempted to block the trial, arguing that their roles as members of the National Security Council (NSC) granted them constitutional immunity. Their legal team maintained that the funds in question were used for national security purposes and therefore fell within the scope of presidential immunity provided under Article 61 of the 1986 Constitution.
However, the Supreme Court of Liberia rejected that argument, ruling that constitutional immunity applies exclusively to a sitting President and does not extend to cabinet ministers or other government officials. The ruling effectively cleared the way for the trial to proceed.
The accused were indicted by the Montserrado County Grand Jury on multiple criminal charges, including Economic Sabotage, Fraud on the Internal Revenue of Liberia, Misuse of Public Money, and Illegal Disbursement and Expenditure of Public Funds. They also face additional charges of Theft of Property, Money Laundering, Criminal Facilitation, and Criminal Conspiracy.
Those standing trial include:
- Samuel D. Tweah, former Minister of Finance and Development Planning
- Cllr. Nyanti Tuan, former Acting Minister of Justice
- Stanley S. Ford, former Director General of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)
- D. Moses P. Cooper, former Comptroller of the Financial Intelligence Unit
- Jefferson Karmoh, former National Security Advisor to former President George Manneh Weah
Court records indicate that the mandate of the Supreme Court was recently read by the clerk of court to the defendants, formally paving the way for full trial proceedings before Criminal Court “C”.
The case is expected to be one of the most closely watched corruption trials in recent years, given the prominence of the defendants and the scale of the alleged financial misconduct.
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