—CSO group urges President Boakai
Two weeks after the family of Justice Gloria Musu Scott wrote the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Cllr. Oshwad Tweh, urging him to concede and right the wrongs committed against their family members, the Independent Civil Society Union of Liberia (ICSUL) has added its voice to the family’s call.
The group is also calling on President Joseph Nyuma Boakai intervene to clean the tainted image of the nation’s house of prosecution if his anti-corruption and good governance campaign must succeed.
The Musu family, citing legal and constitutional provisions, recently petitioned Minister Tweh to act in line with the laws controlling, and concede before the Supreme Court and correct all of the deliberate miscarriages of justice committed by police investigators and state prosecutors against Justice Scott and three of her family members before, during and after the murder trial.
The family’s communication to Minister Tweh read, “Mr. Attorney General and Minister of Justice, we have formally brought this matter to you and your office relying on TITLE 12, The Executive Law, Approved: May 11, 1972 and Published: June 9, 1972, § 22.2, which states, inter alia,: It shall be the duty of the Minister of Justice to (a) Procure the proper evidence for, and conduct, prosecute, or defend all suits and proceedings in the courts in which the Republic of Liberia or any officer thereof, as to such officer, is a party or may be interested. (Emphasis ours),
(b) Institute all legal proceedings necessary for law enforcement,” the communication presented to the office of Justice Minister and Attorney General, Oswald Tweh by the family of Justice Gloria Musu Scott states.
The Independent Civil Society Union of Liberia says it fully agrees with the family’s communication (petition) which the family says is intended to bring to the attention of Minister Tweh what they termed as strange and dangerous occurances before, during and after the trial of their family members further states that the Criminal Procedure Code of Liberia provides legal tools and mechanisms which authorize the Attorney General through Prosecuting Attorneys to prevent, correct and end the miscarriage of Justice, persecution and cruel and inhumane treatment of persons, such that Cllr. Scott and and three of her family members had gone through and continue to go through.
The CSO group described as pointed and serious, the family’s lamentation of the concerning issues to them that in their state of grief with one life lost, the ongoing political manipulations and persecution with four family members languishing behind bars and the clear intention to disregard the opportunity to continue the investigation to find the killer(s) of Charloe Musu.
The group also termed as appropriate, the family’s request in the communication that the Ministry of Justice, pursuant to its legal authority, does what is honorable by instituting measures and actions to ensure that the Police and the Ministry of Justice will not be tools of political objectives and malicious Prosecution.
ICSUL called on the Minister of Justice and Attorney General not to ignore the grave issues raised by the family including their request that the Ministry of Justice through the Police conducts an indepth investigation to establish how the fourth group of intruders, including Blessing Cooper, alias August Jesus, Abraham Jerbo and others got the keys to gain entry on the premises owned by Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott and where Charloe Musu was murdered on February 22, 2023.
Justice Scott’s family recently stressed that following the Trial Judge’s Final Judgement which includes the Life Imprisonment sentence of Justice Scott and others, critical information which exonerate and confirm the innocence of Cllr. Musu-Scott and the occupants of her home have been revealed to the general public via both print and electronic media, to include the revelations by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Monroe A. Dennis, Lead Investigator of the LNP Team of investigators who investigated the gruesome murder, and later informed the public that the outcome of said investigative work as contained in the Police Report presented no evidence to support the charge of Murder, Criminal Conspiracy and Making False Reports to Law Enforcement Officers.
The family’s communication recalls and informs the Minister of Justice thatACP Monroe Dennis informed radio listeners and put in the public sphere that he refused to be a witness in the said murder trial of Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott and others, and left Liberia for the USA in September, 2023, from which safe environment he subsequently resigned from the Liberia National Police, as revealed by him through telephone calls from the USA to Hot FM 107.9, on March 31, 2024 and April 1, 2024 during the morning hours.
Mr. Dennis statements and explanations, according to the family’s communication, were also subsequently aired on Spoon Network on April 4, 2024, 8:00 PM.
“On Spoon Talk and Spoon Late Talk, Mr. Dennis and Cllr Lafayette Gould one of the Prosecutors in this case appeared and Cllr. Gould established that the amount given by the Government of Liberia was infact, US$200.000.00 for the case Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott et al. trial. Mr. Dennis again stated with clarity that the Police investigation led by him was politically influenced and did not gather evidence and findings which pointed to the charges of Murder, Criminal Conspiracy, and Making False Statements to Law Enforcement Officers. Spoon Talk February 23, 2024, 1:00 AM – 2:00 AM, https://fb.watch/rX7L9pDSRq/.
The civil society group also described as troubling, the fact that after the Final Judgement, the prosecutors or lawyers representing the Republic of Liberia including Cllr. Bobby W. Livingstone, Cllr. Adophus Karnuah, Cllr. Lafyette Gould, Cllr. Swaliho Sesay, County Attorney of Montserrado County exposed in the media amidst claims and counter claims that an amount of money in the tone of over US150K was received from the Government of Liberia for the Change of Venue for the prosecution of this said case which didn’t happen but yet this amount shared amongst the Prosecuting lawyers, as contained in this link: https://www.liberianobserver,com/liberia-us150k-allegedly-misappropriated.
“The fourth intrusion of Justice Scott’s home in February 2024, a year after the murder of Charloe Musu, for which neighbors alerted the Police about unknown men on the Compound located in the Sheriff Gas Station Community of Lower Virginia, very crime scene where Charloe Musu was murdered, and the Police arrested the intruders with keys which they used to enter the said property, must not go unnoticed,” the group stressed.
The intruders, Blessing Cooper, alias August Jesus, Abraham Jerbo and Caroline Williams have been charged with Burglary and Theft of Property valued at US$4,000.00.
The Independent Civil Society Union of Liberia says it is shocking and shameful that the total properties/items stolen and value of same were determined by the Police and State Prosecutors without the involvement of Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott, the owner of the compound where the suspects were arrested, as shown by the Writ of Arrest issued by the Monrovia City Court against the herein named three persons and the supporting Police documents attached hereto and in the possession of the Ministry of Justice Prosecuting lawyers.
“Honorable Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the family of Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott and others who are languishing in jail are bringing all of this to you believing and knowing that the Constitution, statutes and decisional laws of Liberia mandate your office and the Ministry of Justice to prosecute true, actual and real wrongdoer(s) and violator(s) of the Criminal laws of Liberia,” the family’s communication further added.
The civil society organization said the family is right to say that they also know and believe that the laws of Liberia grant unto the Attorney General, the authority, duty and responsibility to prevent and correct and end persecution, injustice and cruel and inhumane treatment of citizens and persons within the borders of Liberia, but clearly, the revelations of Monroe Dennis and the quarrel between Cllr. Swahilo Sesay, Cllr. Lafayette Gould, Cllr. Bobby Livingstone and Cllr. Adolphus Kanuah, over the division/distribution of the huge amount of money paid out to the Prosecution lawyers, who also receive monthly GOL salary checks, explains the Government of Liberia’s determination to target and persecute Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott and her family members.
According to the family’s communication, from the explanation of Mr. Monroe Dennis and the confessed amounts, whether US$150,000.00 or US$200,000.00, paid by the Government of Liberia to the Ministry of Justice for this case, convince family members and others that this amount was to secure false witnesses and for bribery, to obtain a guilty verdict favorable to the political objectives of the Government by all means.
ICSUL also endorsed the family’s conviction that the money and the drive to secure the political objectives of the Government of Liberia, enthused and emboldened the former Solicitor General, Cllr. Nyenati Tuan to brazenly make a clandestine, illegal and unauthorized visit at the quarters of the sequestered trial Jurors, after the Temple of Justice Building had closed down for normal business, leaving the premises in the care of the Judiciary securities. The confessed actions of Solicitor General Cllr. Nyenati Tuan give the family and others the indication and perception that the true intent of this visit was to influence members of the Jury with a portion of the money paid to the Ministry of Justice for this case.”
The group maintained that former Solicitor General, Nyanti Tuan does not deserve to be a qualified lawyer in Liberia right now, but one who deserves to be in jail for his deliberate and shameful violation of sacred jury rules in his quest to obtain and celebrate a false verdict.
The civil society movement also believes that because of Cllr. Tuan’s illegal and unauthorized visit to the sequestered Jurors’ quarters, many people, including the family, were not really shocked at the Guilty Verdict returned by the Jury even though Dr. Koulee, the Government of Liberia’s Pathologist boldly stated that he discarded critical element of his findings including the “mixed DNA” he found under the finger nails of the late Charloe Musu.
“We strong agree that the next critical incident since the conclusion of the trial in the lower court, which indicates that the Ministry of Justice is continuing the persecution of Cllr. Scott and her family members, as cited by the family’s communication, is the police investigation of persons found in and on the premises owned by Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott, where the Writ of Arrest caused by the office of the County Attorney of Montserrado County to be issued out of the Monrovia City Court, is clear evidence that the persecution and manipulation continues, and that the intrusion of these persons who were arrested with KEYS to the premises owned by the Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott is a significant link to the trial of our family members. We believe this subsequent incident is critical and if the Ministry of Justice is interested in the truth, this investigation and the preparation of Court documents will be done with care and due diligence. Instead, the Police conducted an investigation without any contact with the owner of the compound, the dwelling house and other structures and expensive equipment in the premises,” the CSO group stressed.
