MONROVIA – Former Speaker Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa and fellow defendants in the high-profile Capitol arson case filed a petition for a writ of certiorari before the Supreme Court of Liberia on Thursday, September 25, 2025, seeking review of a lower court decision. The move came a day after Criminal Court “A” Judge Roosevelt Willie denied their motion to suppress key evidence, intensifying legal tensions surrounding the trial.
A writ of certiorari is a legal order from a higher court directing a lower court to submit the full record of a case for review. The petition by Koffa and co-defendants challenges Judge Willie’s September 24 ruling, which rejected defense claims that evidence gathered during the investigation should be excluded due to alleged violations of the defendants’ constitutional rights.
Judge Willie had dismissed the defense argument that the defendants were sodomized and tortured while in state custody, and therefore evidence obtained during interrogation should be suppressed. To assess these claims, the court ordered a medical examination conducted by Dr. Philip Zochonis Ireland of AMI Expeditionary Healthcare. In his report, Dr. Ireland acknowledged significant limitations, stating, “The passage of time between the alleged incidents and the examinations obscured or altered physical findings.” He also noted “the inherent limitations of available diagnostic modalities within our present setting” and that consent for certain examinations, particularly genital and anal assessments, had been revoked. Despite these constraints, Dr. Ireland provided “a thorough, impartial, and professionally grounded account of the clinical evidence before me,” documenting scar wounds and illnesses on some defendants but concluding that these could not be definitively linked to torture.
In his ruling, Judge Willie said, “While we cannot definitely state that the account was conclusive to enable us make the informed decision necessary to suppress the evidence, we do recognize and appreciate the effort made by the AMI Expeditionary Healthcare through Dr. Philip Zochonis Ireland. However, we cannot fully rely on the information to suppress the evidence.” The court also noted that during the medical evaluation, all defendants denied sexual assault and retracted consent for genital and anal examinations, undermining the defense’s claims of sodomy. Citing Article 21(c) of the 1986 Constitution, Judge Willie emphasized that the defendants’ rights were explained to them and their lawyers were present throughout questioning. He concluded, “WHEREFORE, and in view of the foregoing, the Court says based on the facts, the medical report, and the law cited herein, the Motion to Suppress the Evidence is hereby denied and this case is ordered proceeded forthwith.”
Following the ruling, Koffa dismissed the strength of the prosecution’s case, questioning whether any credible evidence linked him and his co-defendants to the December 18, 2024 blaze that gutted the Capitol Building. Speaking to journalists, Koffa asked, “Do you have eyewitnesses? No. Do you have a camera to show who lit the fire? No. Do you know who lit the fire? No. Do you have forensic evidence, fingerprint, footprint, hair fibers, and what have you, to prove your case? No. What you have is a bunch of follow-ups and a bunch of recordings, and that will not be sufficient to sustain a guilty verdict. They have nothing.”
Koffa also addressed medical assessments linking injuries sustained by some defendants to alleged torture. Referring to expert reports, he said, “In Thomas Etheridge’s report, it says, ‘consistent with allegations of torture,’ period. There’s no qualification. If you look at another, Stephen M. Broh, it said, ‘consistent with allegations of torture, but could be other things.’ So you don’t just take what is convenient. You take all the reports together. What about those that were consistent? Do you know that? You don’t.”
Despite the setback in court, Koffa maintained that the case against him and his co-defendants lacked solid foundation. “We’re going to trial with the overwhelming evidence that they say they have. Which, again, they do not have eyewitnesses. They do not have cameras to show who made the fire. They do not have forensic evidence. Imagine the LPRC evidence says the poor water quality of water and kerosene. What kind of nonsense is that?” he said.
