Key facts
- The U.S. has indicted 30 people allegedly involved in the 2021 plot to assassinate Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.
- Eighteen suspects were flown from Haiti to the U.S. to face charges.
- Joseph Felix Badio, a former Haitian government official, is accused of masterminding the plot.
- Prosecutors allege conspirators hired Colombian mercenaries to kill Moïse and install a U.S.-Haitian doctor as his replacement.
- The plotters allegedly used a web of companies and pandemic-era loans to fund the operation.
The United States has significantly expanded its prosecution of the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, indicting 30 people and flying 18 suspects out of Haiti to the U.S. The alleged mastermind, Joseph Felix Badio, a former Haitian government official, appeared in a Miami court. Prosecutors allege that conspirators, operating in Haiti and Florida, hired Colombian mercenaries impersonating Drug Enforcement Administration agents to kidnap and kill Moïse, and then install a U.S.-Haitian doctor as his replacement.
According to the indictment, the plotters used a web of companies and pandemic-era loans to fund the plot, shipping items to Haiti under fraudulent labels. Gang leader Vitel'homme Innocent, who remains at large in Haiti, was also named in the indictment. He previously gained international attention for alleged involvement in the kidnapping of 17 U.S. and Canadian missionaries.
Haitian political analysts suggest the indictments highlight the country's broken judicial system, where investigations into Moïse's murder have yielded no trials. However, some hope the U.S. case will deliver accountability. At least a dozen people have previously pleaded guilty or been convicted in U.S. court proceedings related to the assassination, with five receiving life sentences.