A judge responsible for investigating the July 7, 2021 murder of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse has indicted his widow, Martine Moïse, ex-prime minister Claude Joseph, and the former chief of Haiti’s National Police, Léon Charles, among others, as cited by a report obtained on Monday.
According to the 122-page report issued by Walther Wesser Voltaire–who is the fifth judge to lead the investigation after previous ones stepped down for several reasons, including fear of endangerment or being killed–dozens of suspects were indicted.
Charles, who served as police chief when Moïse was assassinated and is now Haiti’s permanent representative to the Organization of the American States, is faced with the most serious charges, including murder, attempted murder, possession and illegal carrying of weapons, conspiracy against the internal security of state, and criminal association.
Haitian police allege that a group of mainly foreign mercenaries – 26 Colombians and two Haitian Americans – made up the group that carried out the killing. The murder was particularly vicious and bloody. The president was shot 12 times, some to his forehead and several to his torso. His left eye had been gouged out and bones in his arm and in his ankle had been broken, according to one of the judges conducting the investigation.
The motive seems to have been a plot orchestrated by Claude Joseph and Martine Moïse to replace him as president.
Whereas Joseph, and Martine Moïse- who was injured in the attack- are facing accusations of complicity and criminal association.
These indictments may further destabilize Haiti as it faces surges in gang violence and recovers from a spree of protests demanding the resignation of the current prime minister, Ariel Henry.
Although Moïse and Charles have not yet commented on the indictments, Joseph has accused Prime Minister Henry of “undermining” the investigation and benefitting from the president’s death along with the corruption involved, calling on him to resign.
Joseph also asserted that while he was still prime minister, he invited the FBI to help local authorities investigate the killing and wrote the U.S. and OAS for help.
In his report, the judge noted that the former secretary general of the National Palace, Lyonel Valbrun, told authorities that he received “strong pressure” from Martine Moïse to put the president’s office at the disposal of Joseph as he needed it to “organize a council of ministers.”
Valbrun also reported that two days after the assassination, Martine Moïse visited the National Palace for almost five hours to remove “a bunch of things,” and also called him to slander her deceased husband and disclose her plan to become the succeeding president.
As of now, more than 50 suspects allegedly linked to the killing of President Moïse are in prison awaiting trial.
