Haitian President Jovenel Moïse sits with his wife Martine during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Assembly in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Tuesday, February 7, 2017. The judge investigating President Moïse's assassination in July 2021 has released the final report indicting him. Among others, the widow, former prime minister Claude Joseph, and former Haitian national police chief Léon Charles.
Due Nario Cherry/AP
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Due Nario Cherry/AP
Haitian President Jovenel Moïse sits with his wife Martine during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Assembly in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Tuesday, February 7, 2017. The judge investigating President Moïse's assassination in July 2021 has released the final report indicting him. Among others, the widow, former prime minister Claude Joseph, and former Haitian national police chief Léon Charles.
Due Nario Cherry/AP
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The Haitian judge in charge of the investigation into the assassination of President Jouvenel Moïse in July 2021 has, among others, his widow Martine Moïse, former prime minister Claude Joseph, and former Haitian national police chief Léon Charles. They were indicted. said in a report released on Monday.
The charges are expected to further destabilize Haiti, which has suffered a spike in gang violence and is recovering from a wave of violent protests calling for the resignation of current Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
Dozens of suspects were indicted in a 122-page report released by Judge Walter Wesser Voltaire. Judge Walther Wesser Voltaire is the fifth judge to lead the investigation after previous judges resigned for various reasons, including fear of being murdered.
Charles, who was police chief when Moise was killed and is now Haiti's permanent representative to the Organization of American States, faces the most serious charge of murder. Attempted murder. Possession and Unlawful Carrying of Weapons. Conspiracy against the internal security of a nation. and criminal organizations.
Meanwhile, Joseph and Martine Moise, who was injured in the attack, have been charged with conspiracy and criminal conspiracy.
Charles could not immediately be reached for comment, nor was Martine Moise's lawyer.
Meanwhile, former prime minister Joseph issued a statement to the Associated Press accusing Henry of “undermining” the investigation and profiting from the president's death.
“Henry…is weaponizing the Haitian justice system and prosecuting political opponents like me. This is a classic coup,” Joseph said. “They failed to kill me and Martine Moïse on July 7, 2021, and now they are using the Haitian justice system to further their Machiavellian agenda.”
Joseph again called on Henry to resign, pointing out that when Henry was still Prime Minister, he asked the FBI to help investigate murders by local authorities and wrote letters to the United Nations and OAS asking for assistance.
“I will not stop fighting. Justice must be served.”
In the judge's report, the former secretary-general of the National Palace, Lionel Valbrun, told authorities that he was under “strong pressure” from Martine Moïse to “lead the presidency to Joseph”. I pointed out what I did. Council of Ministers. ”
Valbrun also said that two days before her husband was killed, Martine Moise visited the National Palace and spent nearly five hours removing “a lot of stuff” from 10pm to 3am. .
Two days after Jovenel Moïse was murdered, Martine Moïse called me and said, “Mr. Jovenel has done nothing for us. He must open his office. The president is Ti Claude. “I told him to form a council of ministers and he would do that,” he said. If we hold an election in three months and allow me to become president, we can now have power. ”
Ty Clod's name is not mentioned in the document, but former prime minister Claude Joseph is known by that name.
The judge said in his report that Martine Moise “suggested” that she take shelter under the couple's bed to protect herself from her attackers, but authorities at the scene said “even giant rats… Its dimensions are 35 cm and 45 cm, which will fit under the bed.
The judge said the former first lady's statements were “full of contradictions, leave something to be desired, and undermine her credibility.”
Another person facing murder and other charges is Haitian-American pastor Christian Emmanuel Sanon. He said he thought he was Haiti's next president and thought Mr. Moïse would just be arrested. Joseph Vincent, Haitian-American, former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration informant. Dimitri Erard, head of presidential security. John Joel Joseph, former Haitian senator. and Haitian judge Windel Koch, who authorities say is a fugitive.
Sanon, Vincent, and Joseph were extradited to the United States, and a total of 11 people are facing federal charges in the murder of the Haitian president. At least three of them have already been sentenced.
Meanwhile, more than 40 suspects are awaiting trial in Haiti, but it was not immediately clear how soon they would be detained after Monday's indictment. Among them are 20 former Colombian military personnel.
Jayner Alberto Carmona Flores' wife Milena Carmona told The Associated Press that he is innocent.
“What's happening now is that this crime is a massive conspiracy with people in power running everything behind the scenes, and that's why they're not being given freedom,” she said of the former soldiers. .
U.S. prosecutors say the case is a plot hatched in both Haiti and Florida to hire mercenaries to kidnap and kill Moise, who was 53 years old at the time of his murder in a private residence near the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. He explains.
According to witnesses, the attack began late on July 6 and ended on July 7.
Interrogated Martine Moise and others said they heard heavy gunfire starting around 1 a.m. The gunfire lasted for 30 to 45 minutes before armed men burst into the presidential couple's bedroom.
Moyes said that as he lay on the ground, he heard his attackers shouting: “No! No! No!”
He said the suspects had a video call to determine the exact location they were searching at the time of the president's murder. He added that the suspects were lying on their stomachs when they tilted their heads and pulled one of their legs “to make sure they were not alive.”
After they left, Moise said she dragged herself on the ground and whispered to her husband that she was going to the hospital.
“At that time, she realized that the president was dead and that his left eye had been removed from its socket,” the report states.
Moïse said a group of about 30 to 50 police officers was supposed to guard the presidential palace, but the judge noted that there were only a few police officers present that night. One police officer told the judge that he heard explosions and a voice through a megaphone saying, “Don't shoot! This is a Drug Enforcement Administration operation! It's the U.S. military! We know how many officers are inside. Put your hands down and get out.” He testified that he heard it.
Another police officer said the first lady's security chief found her in a “critical condition” surrounded by her two children. He also said he saw an unspecified number of people coming out of the presidential palace “with briefcases and several envelopes in hand.”
The report states that Inspector General Andre Vladimir Palazon said he received a phone call from the president at 1:46 a.m. and said, “Palazon! Hey, hurry! We're in trouble! Come quickly and save my life.'' It is reported that he said. He said he encountered heavily armed men and was immediately unable to gain access to the residence.
Police at the scene said they found the president's car, windows and doors riddled with bullet holes, a security camera disconnected and the lock on the double wooden door leading to the president's bedroom broken.
The judge said some officers at the residence were disarmed and handcuffed, while others “had time to throw themselves into the ravine” for their safety. Additionally, the police officer who oversaw the president's security is suspected of accepting $80,000 in bribes to certain officers “not to take any action” during the assassination.
The judge noted that “none of the police who were providing protection to the head of state were in any danger. Unfortunately, the head of state could have easily been assassinated.”
