MONROVIA — The Debt Court for Montserrado County has issued a Writ of Attachment against the Speaker of the Majority Bloc, Richard Nagbe Koon, ordering the seizure of his assets following a debt claim filed by his wife, Madam Cecelia Kpor Koon.
By Selma Lomax [email protected]
The legal dispute stems from a lawsuit in which Madam Koon is seeking to recover $38,500.00 from the lawmaker, her husband, and the case has quickly become a topic of significant public attention.
Mrs. Koon alleges that her husband had failed to properly account for rental income generated from their jointly owned property in Unity Conference Center, Virginia, Montserrado County.
The couple, married for 25 years, purchased and developed the land in 2004, creating five duplexes with a total of ten apartments, which they then used for rental purposes. Since 2007, however, Mrs. Koon claims she has received no clear information about the income generated from these properties.
In the court documents, Mrs. Koon alleges that despite their mutual agreement to rent the property for family support, her husband has refused to provide any accounting for the rental income or disclose how the proceeds were used.
Over the years, Mrs. Koon has made repeated requests for transparency, only to be met with resistance from her husband, including an instance in 2015 where he reportedly instructed her to go directly to the tenants to obtain receipts for rental payments.
The legal proceedings escalated when the Debt Court issued the Writ of Attachment on March 31, 2024, compelling the acting sheriff to seize all identifiable properties belonging to Representative Koon to cover the outstanding debt and court costs.
This legal action is particularly significant given Koon’s prominent role as an elected representative of Montserrado County’s District 11 and Speaker of the Majority Bloc.
As per the court’s instructions, assets such as vehicles, equipment, and funds belonging to Representative Koon are to be taken into custody, with the possibility of his arrest if he fails to produce sufficient assets to cover the debt.
While some legal experts see the court’s actions as an important message that no one, including politicians, is above the law, others are concerned that this case may be influenced by political motivations.
The case is further complicated by the personal nature of the dispute, which involves accusations of financial misconduct between a married couple. Mrs. Koon, in her lawsuit, has stated that her husband has singlehandedly managed their joint property without her involvement, even going as far as excluding her from knowledge of the tenants and rental income. The lack of transparency and accountability, she argues, has caused significant tension within their marriage and prompted her to seek legal recourse.
At present, Representative Koon has not publicly responded to the court’s decision, but the Debt Court has instructed the sheriff to return a report on the actions taken by April 10, 2024.
