Ex-Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma Returns Home as High Court Quashes Treason Charges

Former Sierra Leonean President Ernest Bai Koroma has officially returned to Freetown, concluding a high-profile exile in Abuja, Nigeria, following the formal discontinuation of treason charges against him by the Sierra Leonean judiciary. The landmark decision brings an end to months of intense political tension that severely tested West African diplomatic frameworks.

Koroma departed Nigeria's diplomatic protection after state prosecutors in Freetown entered a nolle prosequi, effectively withdrawing all legal proceedings against the former leader. Koroma had been permitted to travel to Abuja in January 2024 strictly on medical grounds, following a high court order that temporarily released him from custody amidst charges connecting him to an attempted military coup in November 2023.

According to reports from diplomatic channels, the resolution follows months of quiet negotiations involving regional leaders. Upon his arrival at the Freetown International Airport, security personnel were deployed along key corridors to ensure public order while political observers monitored the homecoming of the former opposition figurehead.

The initial indictment had accused Koroma of complicity in the violent attacks on military armories and correctional facilities in late 2023—an event that left over 20 people dead. Koroma consistently denied the allegations, maintaining that the treason charges were politically motivated measures intended to undermine opposition leadership within the All People's Congress (APC).