MONROVIA – Several senior officials of the Bureau of State Enterprise (BSE) have been formally indicted by the First Judicial Circuit in Montserrado County on a range of serious criminal charges, including economic sabotage, theft, misapplication of public property, and criminal conspiracy.
The case is being pursued by the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC).
Among those charged are former Director General Hon. Arthur Massaquoi, Comptroller Mr. Matthew F. Kotio, Ms. Kathinal Mitchell, Varlee F. Sanor, Mr. Isaac C. Kporkulah, Ms. Jessephen Yah Dahn, and Mr. Mohammed V. Fofana.
The indictment alleges that these officials engaged in fraudulent financial activities, including authorizing payments without proper documentation and diverting public funds for personal gain.
Specifically, Hon. Massaquoi and Mr. Kotio are accused of approving disbursements exceeding US$71,000 and L$3.8 million to staff and contractors without verifiable evidence of work performed. Additional sums, originally intended for vendors, were allegedly rerouted to other individuals, totaling US$168,961 and L$8.4 million.
The indictment also points to irregular procurement practices involving Benefit Trading International. Authorities allege that the company was pre-selected for contracts to supply stationery and cleaning materials to the BSE, circumventing the formal bid evaluation process. Several invoices were reportedly issued under suspicious circumstances, raising further questions about transparency.
The charges against the officials include: Economic Sabotage: Fraud against Liberia’s internal revenue system and illegal distribution of public funds.
Theft and Misapplication of Public Property: Misuse of government resources for unauthorized purposes.
Criminal Conspiracy and Facilitation: Coordinated efforts to carry out illegal financial transactions. The grand jury determined there was probable cause that the defendants acted with criminal intent, violating Liberian law and threatening the integrity and financial stability of the state.
