Ex-speaker J. Fonati Koffa, indicted with several other lawmakers for alleged arson, alarms of alleged delay tactics by the prosecution.
By Lincoln G. Peters
Monrovia, September 2, 2025: Former speaker, Cllr. Jonathan Fonati Koffa has expressed disdain, frustration, and alarm over the alleged delay tactics by the Ministry of Justice in submitting evidence to Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie of Criminal Court “A” for the commencement of trial in the Capitol Building arson case.
Judge Roosevelt Willie postponed the arson case involving several defendants, including former Speaker Koffa and three other lawmakers, to Tuesday, September 2, 2025.
The postponement of the trial is based on an application by the defense, claiming that evidence they rely on for the trial was sent by the prosecution late on Wednesday evening, so they didn’t have time to preview those pieces of evidence.
However, speaking in an interview with The NEW DAWN at the Temple of Justice following the postponement of the case, former Speaker Koffa expressed frustration over the prosecution’s delay in presenting evidence to the court and the defense for review.
“Thank God you were in the court and you saw how the prosecutions are proceeding, and now, you are saying. I mentioned earlier, and I believe the public needs to pay attention to this. If it doesn’t make sense to you, it’s not the law. It’s fair that you will come at 7:00 pm, the night before the trial, to bring the evidence, the overwhelming evidence you claimed to have. No! It’s not fair”, he argued.
According to him, with the manner and form in which the prosecutions are proceeding, it’s very clear and obvious that they don’t have any evidence, so they are playing delay tactics.
“It’s obvious that it’s a delay tactic because they knew that there would not be a trial today when they brought the evidence at night. They have had the evidence for ten months. June 6, you indicted people on this same evidence, and now, you can’t produce it until midnight. I don’t want to describe what I think is happening because my lawyer won’t like it. Therefore, I will save my comment on describing it.” He concluded.
Following the submission of the evidence, the defense further argued and claimed that the Prosecution had not less than five days to send those pieces of evidence to the defense before the trial commenced, something the prosecution failed to do.
Meanwhile, Judge Willie ruled that the purpose of discovery in a trial is to provide sufficient time for the adverse party to respond to the documents that have been sent to the defense lawyer.
He stated that the defense provided several reasons why the discovery should have been given to them to review, enabling them to determine whether a pre-trial motion could be filed based on the information from the documents.
He indicated that the prosecution should have given those documents five days before the case, and the court believed late Wednesday night wasn’t sufficient for the defense team to have perused those documents.
The special grand jury indicted the defendants from Montserrado County for simple offenses related to the Capitol Building fire incident in December 2024. Editing by Jonathan Browne
