MONROVIA – Mr. Amos P. K. Brosius of Ducor Petroleum has demanded the restitution of the amount of $3.3m illegally withdrawn from the escrow account of the commercial court in the case where is the complainant versus Judge Eva Mappy-Morgan of the Commercial Court of Liberia predicated on the fact that the Judiciary Inquiry Commission(JIC) left that aspect of the decision for the Supreme Court to make and has thus written to the Chief Justice of the apex court, Cllr. Francis Korkpor.
Brosius also demanded that the petition for the case for accounting (Monrovia Oil Trading Corporation versus Amos Brosius)should be forwarded to another court for completion after the funds illegally withdrawn from the escrow account had been returned to that account. He said he believes the request is made in good faith for the court to respect agreement of the parties to have all funds in the name of Ducor Petroleum Incorporated placed in escrow account pending final determination of the petition for accounting that was accordingly ordered by the court and to let the matter be completed in a court where the judges are neutral.
The complainant however told Korkpor in his letter dated Friday, 08 July, 2022, that, “It is with heavy heart that I forward hereunder to your office copy of a petition for insolvency (bankruptcy) dated Tuesday, 31 August, 2021, filed by Monrovia Oil Trading Corporation (MOTC) before Judge Eva Mappy-Morgan of the Commercial Court.”
He quoted various counts of the said petition of MOTC including count five (5) which states: “That petitioner has filed this petition in good faith as it meets the test according to Chapter 8 Section 8.11 Subsection (c) of the Liberian Commercial Code entitled the insolvency and restructuring act in which petitioner’s debt exceeds debtor’s assets at current, and petitioner is unable to pay its debts as they become due and demands for payment are being made.”
“Further to count 5 above, petitioner says that 13ths respondent has prevailed in an action of damages for wrong against petitioner in the civil law court “A” and has been awarded damages in the amount of US$733,583.43,” Count 7 of the petition said.
“Wherefore and in view of the foregoing facts and circumstances and considering that MOTC has declared itself insolvency (bankruptcy), I request that the Supreme Court orders the following: “That every penny that was withdrawn from the escrow account be returned forthwith to the said account. The JIC left that aspect of the decision for the Supreme Court to make,” Brosius continued.
In his 7-page letter to Korkpor, dated Friday, 08 July, 2022, he advanced further that it was noteworthy to abreast the Chief Justice that the 13th respondent as mentioned in MOTC’s petition for insolvency filed before the commercial court is United Petroleum by and through its owner and general manager, Ibrahim K. Hamdan and Karim Kanneh.
He quoted the petitioner (MOTC) as saying that apart from the 11th and 13th respondent’s they have allegedly outstanding debts obligations to West Oil Liberia, Srimex Oil and Gas, Tristar, LLC, Dubai UAE, Petra Energy, Geneva, Arkoil, Geneva and LPRC Storage and Handling.
Others are Liberian Bank for Development and Investment, International Bank Liberia Limited, Ecobank (Liberia) Limited, Guaranty Trust Bank (Liberia) Limited and Global Bank Liberia limited.
He indicated that statement made by MOTC in count eight (8) of its said petition for insolvency confirms the forewarning to the Liberian Judiciary as indicated in paragraph three (3), and page seventeen (17) of the Criminal Court C final judgment of December 26, 2013, 9 years now against the government through MOTC and paragraph 16, 17, 26, pages 101/102 of the PKF audit report to the commercial court that MOTC is a fraudster.
“The filing of the petition for insolvency within one month after the argument of Judge Morgan’s appeal case is a clever move by MOTC to make any judgment from the Supreme Court to not take into consideration that MOTC became insolvent eight (8) years after judge Morgan granted it unhindered access to the escrow account,” Brosius told Justice Korkpor in his letter.
He also told Cllr. Korkpor that MOTC in the said petition to the commercial court listed Skye petroleum, Kailondo Petroleum, Lib Oil Incorporated, Juice Incorporated, Mayouba and Sons Incorporated, Gbani Enterprises Incorporated, IBPS, and National Port Authority.
Others are Makelleh and Sons Incorporated, East Atlantic Ridge Limited, Roberts International Airport, Lib Oil Incorporated Mohammed Musahson, First Class Transport/Romeo Jallah, and Forest Venture Incorporated all of which are debtors.
MOTC, in its petition prayed to the commercial court headed by Judge Eva Mappy-Morgan stated thus: “Wherefore and in view of the foregoing law, facts and circumstances, petitioner prays your court to grant its petition for insolvency and declare petitioner insolvent and grant unto your humble petitioner any and all further relief as in this case as justice and equity will demand.”
Brosius reminded Korkpor of the JIC (Judiciary Inquiry Commission) report dated Wednesday, 7 April, 2021, in which it confirmed his allegations made against Judge Eva Mappy-Morgan that she violated the rules of court that led to depletion of monies belonging to creditors of Ducor other than MOTC and he (Brosius) that had been placed in escrow by the commercial court pending final determination of the petition for accounting case MOTC versus Amos Brosius.
Before then, Thursday, 22 July, 2013, MOTC’s lawyer, T. Negbalee Warner wrote an ex-parte letter to Judge Eva Mappy-Morgan to let him and his client (MOTC) gain access to the said escrow account which contained US$3.3 million because, according to him in his letter to Mappy-Morgan, his client was financially strangulated and they wanted to gain access to the escrow account to enable the said client supply its customers with petroleum product.
As a result, in less than 24 hours of receipt of Warner’s letter, Mappy-Morgan immediately issued a court order for the payment of a larger portion of the over US$3.3 million in escrow account to the sheriff of the commercial court after which, she (Mappy-Morgan), ordered the bank to allow what Warner had requested of her without the knowledge and consent of Amos Brosius (Ducor Petroleum) and his lawyers.
He however refreshed Korkpor’s mind that the action of Judge Mappy-Morgan has over the last ten years shifted the case from one of a matter between MOTC and he (Brosius), to that of a case between the Liberian Judiciary or Judge Morgan, and he (Amos).
It was reported that following JIC’s report submission to Korkpor on Thursday, 3 August, 2021, Brosius’s lawyers received a notice of assignment from the commercial court for a resumption of the hearing of the petition for accounting.
But upon receipt of said notice, Brosius said his lawyers filed a bill of information before the 3 judges’ panel seeking the order of the court to return all monies depleted from the escrow account prior to making any further progress with the case.
“The Commercial Court Panel of Judges on Friday, 13 September, 2013, knowing fully well that MOTC, who, Judge Mappy-Morgan, confessed during the JIC trial that she allowed to gain unhindered access to the escrow account, had filed a petition for insolvency dated Tuesday, 31 August, 2021, did not demonstrate good faith on the part of the judges of that court,” he noted.
Brosius then stated that MOTC’s petition for insolvency filed with the commercial court leaves no room for questioning that the escrow account which Judge Mappy-Morgan confessed to have surrendered to it based on Counselor Negbalee Warner’s Ex-Parte letter is equally insolvent.
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