Former DEA informant given life sentence in Haiti assassination case by US Court
Washington, USA (EFE) – Former US Drug Enforcement Administration informant Joseph Vincent was sentenced to life in prison in Miami, Florida, on Friday for his role in the 2021 assassination of Haiti president Jovenel Moïse.
Among the 11 defendants charged with involvement in a scheme to oust Moise by dispatching a group of Colombian mercenaries to assassinate him at his Port-au-Prince home, two individuals are implicated. Of the four individuals sentenced in Miami thus far, all have been handed life sentences.
READ MORE : Biden issues order at Israeli settlers who perpetrate violence in West Bank
“Please forgive me for what I did,” Vincent, 58, said before his sentencing.
Two months ago, the Haitian-American pleaded guilty to participating in the plot to kill 53-year-old Moïse at his home in Port-au-Prince.
The former DEA informant, who is the fourth of the 11 defendants sentenced to life imprisonment in this case, admitted to having discussed the plot and accompanying accomplices to Moïse’s residence.
It is believed that during these meetings Vincent wore a US State Department pin to make others think he worked for Washington.
In addition, another suspect pleaded guilty on Friday to submitting false or misleading information in the case.
Vincent’s trial was held in Florida because the US Department of Justice ruled that it fell within its jurisdiction, since part of the planning took place in the state.
According to Miami court documents cited by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), between February and July 2021, “South Florida served as a central location for planning and financing the plot to oust Moïse from power and replace him with someone who would serve the co-conspirators’ political goals and financial interests.”
Moïse was tortured and murdered in the early hours of July 7, 2021 in his home in the Pétion-Ville sector of Port-au-Prince by a group of mostly Colombian mercenaries. His wife Martine Moïse was injured in the attack and transferred to Miami.
Former Haitian senator Joseph Joel John, Haitian-Chilean businessman Rodolphe Jaar and former Colombian military officer German Alejandro Rivera García have also been sentenced to life imprisonment in Miami for their roles in the murder.
Since Moïse’s assassination, the country has been controlled by violent armed criminal gangs that have caused a humanitarian crisis and thousands of forced displacements.
The United Nations declared that January had been the most violent month in the country in more than two years, with some 1,100 dead, injured or kidnapped. EFE
(This story has not been created by Diplomat Times’s staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed, edit by Endrit Pjetri)