Haiti is looking for more suspects in the assassination of its president. The commander of Haiti’s National Police, Léon Charles, pleaded with Haitians on Wednesday to assist authorities in tracking down suspects in the assassination of President Jovenel Mose, who is still on the loose.
An ex-senator is one of the suspects, according to Charles, who is accused of supplying the weapons used in the 7 July attack on the president.
During the evening news conference, Haiti’s police commander also accused a Venezuelan billionaire who owns a security firm in Florida of conspiring to travel to Haiti multiple times.
Former Sen. John Jol Joseph, a Haitian politician and opponent of Mose’s Tet Kale party, is one of five fugitives described as armed and dangerous by authorities.
Joseph Felix Badio is another fugitive who has been identified by authorities. Badio, according to Charles, rented a residence near Moise’s to enable the suspects to grasp the area’s layout.
Badio previously worked for the Haitian Ministry of Justice, and in March 2013, he joined the government’s anti-corruption squad.
Four high-ranking individuals in charge of the president’s security detail, according to Charles, are being held in isolation while authorities continue to search down other fugitives, notably Rodolphe Jaar.
Jaar was indicted in federal court in South Florida in 2013 on charges of plotting to import cocaine from Colombia and Venezuela through Haiti to the United States.
According to court documents, he pled guilty and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison.
Authorities in Haiti are probing Mose’s assassination with the assistance of Colombian authorities, who say at least 18 former Colombian troops have been captured and are being held in Haiti.
Three Haitians were also caught, and at least three suspects were slain, according to Charles, who said that the investigation into those apprehended is still ongoing in order to uncover the masterminds behind the slaying.
