The Assassination of Jovenel Moïse

By: Mckenzie Logan, CHI Summer Intern

As political unrest continues to develop, the President of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse, was the subject of an assassination attack on July 7th- killing him and leaving his wife, Martine, severely injured. According to Haitian investigators, two dozen mercenaries attacked Moïse’s home, claiming to be a part of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and overpowered security. The alleged attackers include a number of retired members of Columbia’s armed forces as well as two US-Haitian citizens.
 
While much is still unknown, it has been suggested that these men were under the impression they were being recruited by an American company that needed reinforcements for a job in Central America, offering a significant amount of money. The unnamed recruiter insisted that they were going to aid in the recovery of its national security and democracy, assuring the mission was a noble cause. Now, 18 of the attackers are in Haitian custody. James Solages, one of the US-Haitian citizens implicated in the assassination, has claimed that he and Joseph Vincent were hired as translators after finding the position online.
 
The professed leader of the assassination is Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a US-based Haitian doctor. Haiti’s National Police Chief, Leon Charles, told news sources that Sanon has been arrested after he flew to Haiti accompanied by security guards with the intention of taking over as president. It was also stated that Sanon allegedly hired the Columbian mercenaries through a security firm based out of Florida.
 
As Sanon continues to deny any knowledge of the assassination, authorities are still working to apprehend more suspects.

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Sources:
https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/14/americas/haiti-moise-security-head-intl-hnk/
index.html
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/12/haiti-detains-suspect-in-president-
moises-assassination
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/12/haiti-president-assassination-what-
we-know-so-far-jovenel-moise
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/13/world/americas/haiti-colombia-military-
veterans.html