More than a dozen arrested in connection with 2021 assassination of Haitian president

O presidente do Haiti, Jovenel Moïse, fala durante uma coletiva de imprensa em março de 2020. Fotografia: Andrés Martínez Casares/Reuters. Ver imagem em tela cheia.

Prefer the Guardian on GoogleEighteen people have been arrested in association with the 2021 assassination of the Haitian president Jovenel Moïse, according to US officials.

Moïse, 53, was shot dead on 7 July 2021 at his private residence by a hired group of about 20 military-trained Colombian mercenaries. His security detail did not intervene to protect him.

The suspects have been taken to Florida to stand trial.

In the same post on X, federal prosecutor Jason Reding Quinones said: “18 transported in military plane from Haiti to face American justice in the southern district of Florida.”.

Em maio, quatro homens foram condenados em um tribunal federal em Miami por acusações que incluem conspiração para matar ou sequestrar Moïse, conspiração para fornecer apoio material e violação do US Neutrality Act ao se envolverem em uma operação militar ilícita no exterior.

The men face possible sentences of life in prison.

All four were linked to CTU, a private security firm based in Florida, and lured into the plot by the prospect of securing lucrative contracts in the event of Moïse’s ouster, according to federal prosecutors.

Onze pessoas já foram indiciadas em conexão com o assassinato em tribunais dos EUA, que têm jurisdição sobre planos elaborados no solo americano.

Five of them have been sentenced to life in prison, including a former Colombian soldier, a former Haitian senator, a Haitian Chilean businessman, a retired Colombian soldier and a Haitian American.

Haiti has descended into deeper chaos since Moïse’s killing, and currently has no president.

It is preparing to hold its first presidential and legislative election since 2016, as well as a referendum on the constitution, on 13 December – if security conditions allow.

Gangues controlam cerca de 80% de Port-au-Prince, e crimes violentos como sequestros por resgate, assaltos armados e sequestros de carros assombram a nação empobrecida.

A UN-backed armed force tasked with helping local police combat gangs will not be fully staffed by October as planned, its spokesperson said earlier this month.

Anunciado pelo Conselho de Segurança da ONU no ano passado, a Força de Supressão de Gangues deveria aumentar entre abril e outubro para uma capacidade planejada de 5,500 militares uniformizados e 50 funcionários civis.

As of July, it comprised fewer than 1,000 personnel from Chad, Mongolia, Jamaica, Guatemala, El Salvador and Sri Lanka. More recent figures have not been disclosed.