Sierra Leone Drops Treason Charges Against Former President Ernest Bai Koroma

Sierra Leone’s government has dropped treason charges against former President Ernest Bai Koroma, who was arrested in connection with an attempted coup nearly three years ago. The charges were discontinued on health grounds, Information Minister Chernor Bah told the BBC. The 72-year-old former president has consistently denied any involvement in the November 2023 attempted coup, when gunmen broke into a military armoury and several prisons, freeing almost 2,000 inmates. Around 20 people were killed in the uprising, which came five months after a disputed election that saw President Julius Maada Bio narrowly re-elected for a second term. The results were rejected by Koroma’s All People’s Congress, and international observers also criticised the elections, highlighting a lack of transparency in the count.

In his statement on Tuesday, Koroma expressed gratitude towards President Bio, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and the West African regional bloc ECOWAS for their support. After Koroma was charged and placed under house arrest, ECOWAS brokered a deal with the government of Sierra Leone, allowing the former president to go into exile in Nigeria and seek medical attention there. The attorney general subsequently filed to discontinue the case against Koroma and drop the charges. “The former president is therefore free to return to Sierra Leone at a time of his choosing and to go about his normal business,” Bah added. Eleven civilians and 24 soldiers were found guilty of involvement in the coup attempt and received long prison terms in 2024. Koroma led Sierra Leone for 11 years until 2018, when President Bio was elected. Responding to his case being dropped, Koroma noted his “enduring conviction that peace, justice and reconciliation must always triumph over adversity”.

About The Author

West Africa Weekly

author

See author's posts