Liberia: 13 Ex-Officials Plead Not Guilty in Saudi Rice Diversion Case

What the report says

Thirteen former senior Liberian officials are set to stand trial in Monrovia after pleading not guilty in Criminal Court C to charges connected to the handling of a Saudi donation of rice for disaster victims. The case, reported by The Liberian Investigator and distributed by AllAfrica, involves former officials from the Foreign Ministry, General Services Agency and National Disaster Management Agency, including ex-foreign minister Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah and former Monrovia mayor and GSA head Mary T. Broh.

According to the indictment, Liberia received 29,412 bags of 25-kilogram rice from Saudi Arabia in 2023, but prosecutors allege that 25,054 bags were diverted from their intended humanitarian use. The government says some of the rice was moved without authorization, including a transfer of 13,895 bags to a GSA warehouse. The state has placed the alleged loss value at US$425,918, and prosecutors are seeking to show that officials acted beyond the authority assigned to them.

The defendants face charges that include economic sabotage, theft of property, misapplication of entrusted property, abuse of office and criminal conspiracy. Jury selection was already underway, with selected jurors to be sequestered. The case is part of a broader Liberia anti-corruption and asset-recovery effort, and the defendants remain presumed innocent unless the prosecution proves its case in court.