Justice Scott’s family petitions Attorney General

The family of former Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott writes the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, citing strange occurrences since her murder conviction. 

Monrovia, Liberia, May 10, 2024 –The family of ex-Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott, currently sentenced along with three family members for murder, has written Liberia’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Oswald Tweh, alarming strange and dangerous happenings since the trial and conviction last year.

“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:

Cllr. Scott

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 Minister Tweh by the family of Justice Scott reads.

The communication (petition), which the family says is intended to bring to the attention of Minister Tweh what they term as strange and dangerous occurrences 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 three family members had gone through and continue to go through.

 The family laments that these are very serious and 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 the late Charloe Musu in February 2023.

The communication, therefore, requests 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.

The family is also requesting that the Ministry of Justice, through the Police, conduct an in-depth 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.

The family stressed that following the Trial Judge’s Final Judgment, which includes the Life Imprisonment sentence of Justice Scott and others, critical information which exonerates and confirms the innocence of the convicts have been revealed to the general public via both print and electronic media, including 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 that ACP 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. He 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.

According to the family’s communication, Mr. Dennis’ statements and explanations were also subsequently aired on Spoon Network on April 4, 2024, at 8:00 PM, as provided in this link: https://fb.watch/rX7AcGCzvT/.

“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 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 that 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/.

After the said Final Judgement, prosecutors or lawyers representing the Republic of Liberia, including Cllr. Bobby W. Livingstone, Cllr. Adophus Karnuah, Cllr. Lafayette 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 family further informed the Attorney General of Liberia that in February 2024, a year after the murder of Charloe Musu, neighbors alerted the Police about unknown men on the Compound of Justice Scott located in the Sheriff Gas Station Community of Lower Virginia, the very crime scene where the late Charloe Musu was murdered, and the Police arrested the intruders with keys which they used to enter the said property.

These men, 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 total number of properties/items stolen and their value were determined by the Police and State Procurators 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 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 communication adds.

The family says 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 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.

“We are also convinced 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 brazenly made a clandestine, illegal, and unauthorized visit to the quarters of the sequestered trial Jurors after the Temple of Justice Building had closed for normal business, leaving the premises in the care of the Judiciary securities. The confessed actions of Solicitor General Cllr. Nyenati Tuan gives 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 communication further stresses 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 elements of his findings, including the “mixed DNA” he found under the fingernails of the late Charloe Musu.

The next critical incident since the conclusion of the trial in the lower court indicates that the Ministry of Justice is continuing the persecution of Cllr. As cited by the family’s communication, Scott and her family members are 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 continue.

“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 investigated without any contact with the compound’s owner, the dwelling house, and other structures and expensive equipment on the premises,” the communication emphasizes. Editing by Jonathan Browne