Former First Lady of Haiti is facing allegations of being ‘complicit’ in her husband’s 2021 assassination, with a prosecutor implying her desire to usurp his presidency.
The slain president, Jovenal Moise, was shot dead when armed men broke into his Port-au-Prince bedroom on the night of July 7, 2021, hired by a Miami-based security company, according to the Haitian investigation.
Martine Moïse, who sustained serious injuries in the assault, is indicted for her alleged involvement in her husband’s murder.
The presiding judge noted inconsistencies in Moïse’s statements and some indications suggesting her awareness of a conspiracy against the former president.
Judge Walther Wesser also stated in his report that Martine Moïse “suggested” she took refuge under the marital bed to protect herself from the attackers, but he noted that authorities at the scene found that not “even a giant rat…whose size measures between 35 and 45 centimeters” could fit under the bed.
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Conspired in Killing Haiti President
Walther Wessser said the former first lady’s statements were “so tainted with contradictions that they leave something to be desired and discredit her.”
According to the 122-page document from Judge Walther Wesser Voltaire, made public by AyiboPost, the president’s widow Martine Moise conspired with former Prime Minister Claude Joseph to kill the president in order to replace him.
Joseph and Martine Moïse were accused of complicity and criminal association.
In his report, the judge noted that the former secretary general of the National Palace, Lyonel Valbrun, told authorities that he received strong pressure from Martine Moïse to put the president’s office at the disposal of Joseph because he needed it to organize a council of ministers.
“Valbrun also said that two days before her husband was killed, Martine Moïse visited the National Palace and spent nearly five hours, from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m., removing a bunch of things,” the judge said.
He said that two days after Jovenel Moïse was killed, Martine Moïse called to tell him that, “Jovenel didn’t do anything for us. You have to open the office. The president told Ti Klod to create a council of ministers; he will hold elections in three months so I can become president, now we will have power.”
Testimony from two co-defendants suggested her intent to pursue the presidency following the assassination.
However, the accusations made by investigating Judge Walther Voltaire didn’t offer evidence showing that Martine Moïse directly participated in the assassination plot.
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Others Linked to the Killing Plot
Among those indicted with the former first lady is former chief of Haiti’s National Police, Léon Charles.
Charles, who was police chief when Moïse was killed and now serves as Haiti’s permanent representative to the Organization of the American States, faces the most serious charges including murder and attempted murder.
He is also charged with being in possession and illegal carrying of weapons, conspiracy against the internal security of the state, and criminal association.
Furthermore, more than 40 suspects are in prison in Haiti awaiting trial. Among them are 20 former Colombian soldiers.
A separate case on Moise’s killing is being tried in Miami, where six of 11 defendants have pleaded guilty to a plot to send Colombian mercenaries to kidnap Moise, a plan which was at the eleventh hour changed to a plot to murder him.
