Sierra Leone drops treason charge against ex-president Ernest Bai Koroma

Sierra Leone's government has dropped all charges, including treason, against former President Ernest Bai Koroma. Koroma, 72, had been arrested in connection with an attempted coup in November 2023. Information Minister Chernor Bah stated the charges were dropped due to the former president's health.

Koroma, who led Sierra Leone for 11 years until 2018, has consistently denied any involvement in the 2023 coup attempt. Gunmen had attacked a military armoury and freed nearly 2,000 inmates from prisons during the incident. The former president stated his "enduring conviction that peace, justice and reconciliation must always triumph over adversity."

He also thanked Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, and the West African regional bloc Ecowas for their support. Ecowas had previously brokered a deal allowing Koroma to go into exile in Nigeria for medical treatment after he was charged and placed under house arrest.

The attorney general has filed to discontinue the case, meaning Koroma is now free to return to Sierra Leone and resume his normal activities at his own discretion. In 2024, eleven civilians and 24 soldiers were convicted for their roles in the coup attempt, receiving lengthy prison sentences. The uprising, which occurred five months after a disputed election, resulted in approximately 20 deaths.

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enduring conviction that peace, justice and reconciliation must always triumph over adversity