The United States government has taken custody of 18 defendants to face newly unsealed federal charges related to the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse on July 7, 2021.
They were transported from Haiti to Miami in a special operation that included members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s elite Hostage Rescue Team, FBI Miami case agents, and Homeland Security Investigations agents.
The Department of Justice, in a statement on Monday, said the military aircraft was deployed to handle possible armed gang attacks from around the Port-au-Prince airport in the Haitian capital.
The 18 individuals are among the 30 defendants that a Southern District of Florida grand jury indicted. The charges include fraud and a money laundering scheme that relied on COVID-19 relief funds to finance their plot.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jason Reding Quiñones, noted that the extradition marks the next major phase in the pursuit of accountability for the murder of President Moïse.
“Our work did not end with the men who planned and carried out this assassination.
“We will follow the evidence to those who financed it, facilitated it, supported it, or committed crimes to make it possible,” he said.
Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the FBI Miami Field Office restated the commitment of domestic and international partners to ensure that all who sought to profit from the fatal attack are held fully accountable.
The unsealed court documents show that at least 22 newly named defendants directly engaged in an orchestrated multinational conspiracy involving financing, recruitment, and logistical support to carry out the assassination.
According to the indictment, the alleged conspirators coordinated funding for weapons and other resources, traveled to and from Haiti during planning stages, and used encrypted communications to organize the operation.
Some of the defendants face a statutory maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted. The respective prison term will be determined by a federal judge after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean McLaughlin, Jason Wu, and Altanese Phenelus are prosecuting the case investigated by FBI Miami and HSI Miami, with assistance from Haitian law enforcement and international partners.
In May, four defendants were found guilty of participating in the killing of Moïse. A federal jury in Miami convicted Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, James Solages, and Walter Veintemilla for providing material support.
