A total of 51 accomplices

President’s widow charged with murder in Haiti

A good two and a half years after the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, 51 suspected accomplices have reportedly been charged in the Caribbean state - including the head of state's widow, Martine Moise. She was shot in the assassination attempt.

The accused also include the then Prime Minister Claude Joseph, the then Chief of Police Leon Charles and the head of Moise's bodyguard. This is according to the 122-page indictment by the responsible investigating judge, which the portal "AyiboPost" published on Monday and from which other media quoted.

Moise was killed with twelve shots in his residence on the night of July 7, 2021. According to the investigation, around 20 Colombian mercenaries carried out the crime on behalf of several masterminds. According to the US judiciary, the conspirators' original plan was to kidnap Moise and replace him as head of state.

Background still not fully clarified
These are the first charges in Haiti in this case. In the US state of Florida, where the attack was partly planned, eleven suspects have already been charged and four of them sentenced to life imprisonment. The background to the crime has still not been clarified beyond doubt.

Martine Moise is accused of conspiracy to murder. Among other things, she is said to have claimed that she hid under a bed during the attack. However, the gap under the bed was not high enough for this, the judge wrote. According to the New York Times, her lawyer denied the allegations before the indictment and told the newspaper that his client was hiding.

Country has neither parliament nor president
Shortly after the murder, interim Prime Minister Ariel Henry took over the reins of government in Haiti. There have been no elections since then and the country has neither a president nor a parliament. Brutal gangs control most of the capital Port-au-Prince. An international police operation authorized by the UN Security Council has yet to materialize.