-Orders Full Trial
The Monrovia Criminal Court A” presided over by Resident Circuit Judge Rosevelt Z. Willie has upheld the medical report presented by the AMI but ruled against the motion filed by the Defendants, ordering that the matter proceed to a full trial.
Lawyers representing former House Speaker Cllr. Jonathan Fonati Koffa and three of his colleagues had filed the motion requesting that Criminal Court “A” Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie, praying the court to suppress evidence provided by the government in the ongoing Capitol Building arson case.
The defense argued that the extraction of the evidence that was turned over to them, which includes the audio recordings and WhatsApp messages allegedly implicating the defendants, was done without a search warrant. And that the evidence was extracted in December and turned over to the National Security Agency (NSA), which conducted the forensic analysis of the evidence.
But delivering the ruling to which the defense council excepts, on Wednesday, September 24, 2025, the Court emphasized: “Accordingly, based on the Medical Report, the facts and the honest view of this Court…” the evidence did not support suppression as requested by the Defense.
Judge E.Z. Willie declared: “WHEREFORE AND IN VIEW OF THE FOREGOING, the Court says based on the issues as raised by the Defendants, the Motion is denied and this case is ordered to proceed forthwith. The full trial in these proceedings is hereby assigned for Friday, September 26, 2025, at 10:00am prompt.”
The Judge ruling relied heavily on the testimony and report of Dr. Philip Zochonis Ireland, who despite constraints, provided evidence of “the impression that the Defendants were sodomized, and the impression that the Defendants were tortured.” These admissions, underscored by the ruling, effectively affirmed the Defense’s contention that the rights of the accused were grossly violated and gave more strength to their arguments on suppression.
He further referenced constitutional guarantees, noting: “Article 21(c) provides that every person suspected or accused of committing a crime shall immediately upon arrest be informed in detail of the charges and of his/her rights to counsel.” The Court observed that the Defendants were represented by Counsel throughout the process, dismissing arguments that their rights were violated. Yet, the acknowledgment of constitutional safeguards highlighted the Defense’s insistence that proper procedures must be respected and underscored the defects surrounding the State’s handling of the evidence.
In addition, the ruling addressed international obligations: “It is also the frank assessment of this Court based on Article 10(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which says that all persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.” This recognition of international standards, coupled with the medical testimony, bolstered the Defense’s claims that the process leading to the indictment was fraught with irregularities and constitutional breaches.
Meanwhile, the defense lawyers in their motion argued that because government investigators knew that these procedural defects would be questioned at the level of the trial, one month later, on January 9, 2025, they requested a search and seizure to say that the evidence was collected on January 9 when in fact they had already gathered and seized the evidence in December.
“Therefore, without a search warrant and an application to the court requesting a search warrant, the evidence gathered by the police is faulty. And as a result of this procedural error, all other evidence collected as a result of the illegal conduct carried out by the NSA and the Police must be suppressed, meaning it can’t be used against them.” the defense noted.
The defense team also argued that the NSA is not a criminal investigation agency; therefore, it has no authority to investigate an arson case.
“And all the evidence provided by the government, including arson investigation, the extraction of evidence, and the cyber security unit in December 2024, when the search warrant talked about January 5, 2025, has an NSA signature on them; therefore, these evidences need to be suppressed.” They noted.
Before the Wednesday – September 24, ruling, Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie ordered defendants in the arson case to undergo medical examination at AMI Expeditionary Healthcare, describing it as “an internationally recognized facility providing independent and professional medical services.” The intent of the medical report which the judge directed the results be submitted to the court at the state’s expense, was to establish if the defendants were tortured when the state was gathering evidence.
Defense lawyers immediately rejected the order. “AMI is no different from JFK, both have ties to the Ministry of Justice,” they argued, recalling that when co-defendant Thomas Etheridge collapsed, AMI doctors claimed “it was malaria, not torture.” Counsel maintained that forcing their clients to AMI undermined their constitutional rights.
Despite these objections, the AMI medical report confirmed torture. The findings warned that “without urgent care, the defendants risk serious complications or even death,” and recorded physical evidence consistent with mistreatment.
The report noted that the accused suffered “blurred vision and urinary problems with reddish urine,” symptoms the defendants had long attributed to beatings by agents of the National Security Agency and Liberia National Police.
Though prosecutors expressed dissatisfaction and sought re-examination, the defense insisted the report spoke for itself. “Even from a facility we rejected, the evidence proves our clients were tortured,” they said, pressing that the state’s case was tainted and could not stand on such grounds.
