Conflicts & War

Widow of assassinated Haitian president charged with complicity

Port-au-Prince, Feb 19 (EFE) – Haitian judge Walther Voltaire on Monday accused Martine Moïse, widow of assassinated President Jovenel Moïse, of complicity and criminal association in the 2021 assassination, according to the judicial report obtained by EFE on Monday.

Along with the widow, 50 other people were charged, including 17 Colombians, as well as former Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph and former national police chief Léon Charles, who now serves as the Caribbean country’s permanent representative to the Organization of American States (OAS).

Joseph faces the same charges as Martine Moïse, while Charles faces more serious charges: attempted murder, possession and illegal carrying of weapons, conspiracy against the internal security of the state, and criminal association.

“There are concordant charges and sufficient evidence to justify their responsibility in the facts with which they are charged,” reads the judge’s statement.

The document also refers them “to the criminal court, sitting without a jury, to be tried for association to commit a crime, armed robbery, terrorism, murder and complicity in murder, crimes committed to the detriment of Jovenel Moise.”

As for Moise’s widow, it claims that her statements on the assassination of the president “are so riddled with contradictions that they leave much to be desired and discredit her.”

Judge Walther Wesser Voltaire sent the 122-page order to a prosecutor, who will now inform the defendants of the charges.

Others facing charges, including murder, are Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a Haitian-born American minister who envisioned himself as Haiti’s next president and said he believed Moise was under arrest; Joseph Vincent, a Haitian-born American and former informant for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency; Dimitri Herard, the head of presidential security; John Joel Joseph, a former Haitian lawmaker; and Windelle Coq, a Haitian lawmaker who authorities say is a fugitive.

11 suspects have been extradited to the US and charged with murder; five have already pleaded guilty in the US, where the plot was planned and financed, and three have been convicted.

The indictments comes amid a surge in gang violence in Haiti and a series of violent protests demanding the resignation of current Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Moise was tortured and killed by a group of mercenaries, mostly Colombians, at his home in Port-au-Prince on July 7, 2021.

His wife was injured in the attack and was transferred to Miami (United States) the same day. EFE

ims/mcd

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