MONROVIA, Montserrado – A legal expert and member of the Liberian Bar Association has said challenges to bonds filed on behalf of House Speaker Alex Tyler and Senator Varney Sherman are understandably a result of due diligence being applied to a high profile case.

Cllr. Ruth Jappah said within the Liberian court system, bonds are routinely filed without all the proper requirements, adding that she has witnessed it on many occurrences. However, she said the lack of proper scrutiny of documents allow these cases to slip under the radar.

On May 27, Montserrado County Attorney Daku Mulbah challenged the criminal appearance bonds of Tyler, Sherman, E.C.B. Jones, and Christopher Onanuga in the ongoing bribery case stemming from the Global Witness report.

In the document filed before Criminal Court C’s Judge Emery S. Paye, Daku claimed that the defendants’ bonds did not meet the necessary requirements for submitting bonds, according to the rules of the court.

Among other claims, Daku’s filing noted that there was no proof that the bond amounts of US$150,000 and US$1.5 million had been deposited into “a government depository or a reliable bank and a receipt issued therefor showing the purpose for the amount deposited.”

The filing also pointed out that the bond filed by Sky International Insurance Corporation on behalf of Tyler was not accompanied by a bank statement “to support the claim that the surety has said amount in its account.”

Daku also claimed that Omega Insurance Company’s bond filed on behalf of Sherman and the other defendants was not an official account statement from the bank, as the statement did not include the logo of the bank. The full claims filed by Daku can be found here.

If the defendants cannot justify the bonds filed or submit another bond, they could find themselves incarcerated.

Jappah said the bonds were initially accepted because it is not the responsibility of the court to review the documents submitted by the defendants, but the plaintiff could challenge the validity of the bonds.

“They really did their due diligence on the bond that was presented, but normally, people won’t check those things,” Jappah said, adding that the likely high-profile nature of the case and the general public outrage is driving the need for scrutiny. “People are crying for blood.”

Featured photo by Jefferson Krua