MONROVIA – The Monrovia City Court has granted bail to former House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa and three other Montserrado County lawmakers following a hearing on the justification of their US$440,000 criminal appearance bond. Stipendiary Magistrate L. Ben Barco ruled on Thursday, June 26, 2025, that the bond is legally sufficient and the defendants are to be temporarily released pending further proceedings.
Koffa, along with Representatives Thomas Fallah Seboe, Abu Kamara, and Dixon W. Debee, appeared before the court after prosecutors raised objections to the validity of the sureties named in the bond. Prosecutors alleged that the individuals listed as Jonda Janet Koffa and Marjan Mous Koffa were non-existent, and described the filing as a delay tactic. They requested that the bond be nullified unless properly justified or replaced.
Defense attorneys countered that the prosecution’s objections lacked merit and urged the court to dismiss them entirely. Judge Barco sided with the defense, citing Article 21(d) of the 1986 Constitution of Liberia, which guarantees the right to bail for individuals accused of non-capital offenses. He further ruled that the sureties are authorized under law to serve on a criminal appearance bond and emphasized that the bond filed was not an indemnity bond.
The court, therefore, denied the prosecution’s exceptions and granted the defense’s motion to justify the bond. The Clerk of Court has been ordered to transmit the court’s minutes to the 1st Judicial Circuit, Criminal Court “A,” to notify Judge Roosevelt Willie of the ruling.
The case stems from multiple felony charges filed against the lawmakers, including arson, criminal mischief, conspiracy, solicitation, intent to commit murder, aggravated assault, illegal possession of firearms, use of force, and theft of property. The US$440,000 bond is part of a broader US$1.8 million criminal appearance bond filed earlier this month, which requires the defendants to appear in court throughout the trial and to surrender themselves if convicted.
Judge Roosevelt Willie previously declined jurisdiction over the bond dispute, ruling on June 19 that such matters must first be resolved at the magisterial level. He instructed Magistrate Barco to conduct a full justification hearing, which has now resulted in the defendants’ release.
On June 24, the Monrovia City Court had ordered the defendants to present their sureties by 9:00 a.m. or face rearrest. With the sureties now deemed sufficient, Koffa and his co-defendants remain free as the high-profile case proceeds through the judicial system.
