Three years after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, the investigation remains bogged down in Haiti, while the United States has already convicted several culprits. The 58th president of Haiti was shot dead in his private residence in Pèlerin 5, riddled with bullets by an armed commando composed of twenty-six Colombians and two Americans of Haitian origin.
Since the murder that occurred on the night of July 6-7, 2021, the Haitian justice system has seen five investigating judges pass through, each dismissed without any conclusive results. The dean of the Port-au-Prince court of first instance, Me Bernard Saint-Vil, appointed Judge Walter Wesser Voltaire in May 2022.
After more than 20 months, the latter ordered the trial of about fifty people, including Martine Moïse, Félix Badio, Léon Charles, and Dimitri Hérard. This decision was contested, while figures such as former Prime Minister Ariel Henry saw the charges dropped against them. To date, no follow-up has been given to this order, leaving the Haitian justice system in an impasse.
Unlike in Haiti, the American justice system moved quickly. Judge José Martinez awarded Martine Moïse $5.3 million for her medical and security expenses, and her son Jovelin Moïse, who lives in Canada, $865,396. In addition, six men were sentenced to life in prison for their involvement in the plot: Joseph Joël John, Rodolphe Jaar, German Rivera, Mario Antonio Palacios, and Joseph Vincent.
Frederick Bergmann was sentenced to nine years in prison for violating federal law by shipping ballistic vests used in the attack. While the United States has already taken concrete steps, Haiti still seems far from the truth. The road to justice and the full disclosure of the events of that fateful night of July 7, 2021, is still fraught with challenges. The next steps remain uncertain, but the quest for truth and justice continues.
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