The US$3.5 million action of damages filed against Ecobank Liberia Limited by the Embassy Suites Hotel Wednesday took a dramatic turn when one of the counsels for the
defense requested the court to disband the entire jury panel after a juror was arrested for bribery.
In his application for the disbandment of the panel, Atty. Abraham Sillah, who represents Ecobank Liberia Limited, informed the court that Juror Elizabeth Belly was seen at the Benson Street offices of Cllr. Cooper W. Krauh on Tuesday afternoon at about 4pm.
It can be recalled that on December 30, 2014, Juror Belly was removed from the panel after it was allged that she was caught exchanging cell phones number with one of the plaintiff’s witnesses, Bobby Solomon.
Atty. Silla told the court after receiving the information that juror Belly was at Cllr. Kruah’s Law Offices, he deploy some plain clothes intelligence officers of the Liberia National Police (LNP) and a local journalist to keep surveillance.
Cllr. Kruah is representing the legal interest of Embassy Suites in the US$3.5 million suit against Ecobank as well as one of the lead prosecutors.
The defense lawyer further said in open court that while the officers were in disguise at about 8 pm, juror Belly allegedly surfaced from Cllr. Kruah’s offices but she was arrested while trying to escape the scene.
Atty. Silla told the court that the action of juror Belly is a potential threat to the entire panel on grounds that the jurors, who are judges of facts to determine the case, are not sequestrated.
The defense prayed the court to conduct a full scale investigation of Juror Belly and Cllr. Kruah so as to serve as deterrent to others.
Resisting the application made by the defense, Cllr. Krauh prayed the court to deny the submission on grounds that it had no legal basis.
Cllr. Krauh argued that Juror Belly was removed from the panel, thus her presence at his offices had no effect on the case at bar.
Prosecutor Krauh insisted that Juror Belly was not under the jurisdiction of the court, and that the allegation made by counsels for the defense was baseless and unfounded.
Cllr. Kruah told Judge Johannes Zlahn that the law in this jurisdiction did not restrict any citizen from walking in the streets of Monrovia.
However, Judge Zlahn disbanded the panel and ordered the clerk of court to call for the vernal that was not selected while Juror Elizabeth Belly remains in police detention for investigation.