Monrovia — On long last, the Government of Liberia has finally indicted former Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott and her family following the death of their daughter Charloe Musu at their residence in Monrovia in February on this year.
The three-count indictment was drawn on Tuesday, June 27, 2023 by the Special Grand Jury for Montserrado County.
With the coming into effect of the indictment, the stage is now set for a full-blown trial at Criminal Court "A" on the grounds of the Temple of Justice.
The indictment, among other things, stated that on the 22nd day of February 2023, at about 10:00 PM, the defendants Cllr. Gloria Musu Scott, Gertrude Newton, Alice Johnson and Rebecca Y. Wisner, with criminal minds and intend, armed with a sharp instrument believed to be a knife and pepper spray intentionally inflicted several bodily injuries on the deceased including her chest, right hand, left thigh and left armpit, which led to her death, thereby committing the crime of murder.
According to the indictment, after the family had eaten and we're all in the house on the night stated above, the security guards assigned to the home of the defendants heard crying sound coming from inside the house.
It narrated that as the sound got louder, security guards Anthony Musu and Zion Tarr approached the room window of Madam Scott and in that process they saw Co-defendant Newton slid the bathroom window glass of the former Chief Justice and upon see them, she started screaming for help saying "that the people on us in the house!"
The indictment further noted that also seen in the bathroom with Co-defendant Newton was Charloe Musu, now deceased.
After hearing from the defendant that someone was in the house; security guard Zion Tarr left to call their commander identified as Moses Wright and told him that someone was in the house on the occupants based on what Co-defendant Newton had told him.
When security guards Wright and Tarr returned, they left security guard Anthony Musu at the bathroom window of Co-defendant Scott, they went at the back of Co-defendant Wisner's room.
The indictment further alleged that when the security guards got at window, they were instructed to break the window bar if he had anything to allow them come outside.
As instructed, they broke the window bar with a cutlass and aided three of the defendants, in person of Newton, Alice Johnson and Wisner to get outside through the window.
After the three defendants came outside, and being very concerned about the armed robbery, the security decided to remain at the window with his cutlass to see any intruder coming out, since there was no other entry or exit at the time.
One of the community members the indictment said who entered the house told police investigators that when he entered the house through one of the back windows, he saw the deceased lying in the bathroom bleeding and he help to carry her to the hospital.
On the count of criminal conspiracy, the indictment stated that the defendants in an attempt to cover up the truth about what transpired in the house, they decided to concoct a story that an unknown man entered the house and stabbed the deceased to death and also stabbed Co-defendant Alice Johnson; but to the contrary, it was the defendants who murdered the deceased as established by the investigation based on the conspirator behavior and conduct.
The indictment explained that the defendants with criminal minds and intent to destroy evidence, caused co- defendant Gertrude Newton and Alice Johnson, to return to the house on the night of the incident, and upon which time, security guard Zion Tarr saw them carrying away a black bag containing several items, part of which is suspected to be the murder weapon/criminal agency.
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The indictment further stated that it is observed from the facts and circumstances that the defendants changed and concealed the blouse that the deceased was wearing at the time of violent attack on her person before taking her to hospital.
The document added that the defendants also prohibited the investigators from entering a room in the house which was locked by Co-defendant Newton for several days.
Having been compelled by the police investigators to open the room in the presence of Co-defendant Newton's lawyers, bloodstains associated with the deceased were found in several parts of the room, along with a torn bra, believed to be that of the deceased.
As for the crime of false report to law enforcement officials which is violation of chapter 12, section 12.3 of the New Penal Law of Liberia; the defendants commit the false alarm after the murder of Charloe Musu when she was stabbed multiple times to death.
