This study examines the limits of Liberia’s Freedom of Information Act (2010) in criminal investigations, using the US$19.2 million cocaine seizure at Roberts International Airport as a case study. It is grounded in the transparency–accountability nexus theory, public interest theory, and institutional theory, which collectively explain the interaction between access to information, governance accountability, and the need for investigative confidentiality. The study adopts a qualitative doctrinal legal research design, relying on statutory provisions, policy documents, official reports, and relevant scholarly literature. Findings reveal that Liberia’s legal framework pairs a categorical constitutional guarantee of the public right to be informed (Article 15(c)) with a narrow, justification-based statutory exemption for criminal investigations under the FOI Act of 2010. However, that statutory test governs requests for records held by public bodies and does not reach the unofficial circulation of investigative materials, including CCTV footage and operational records circulated on social media. These disclosures pose risks to evidentiary integrity, chain of custody, fair trial rights, and public confidence in law enforcement institutions. The study further finds that while the FOI Act provides a normative basis for balancing competing interests, it was not designed to regulate digital-era information flows or third-party dissemination of sensitive investigative content, which fall instead to cyber, criminal and contempt law. Reported compliance gaps, including the limited appointment of public information officers, further limit the effectiveness of existing safeguards. The study concludes that Liberia’s FOI regime requires legal and institutional reforms to better align transparency with investigative confidentiality in the digital age. It recommends strengthening digital evidence protection, clarifying exemption procedures, and establishing robust information governance protocols to safeguard both public accountability and criminal justice integrity.