Haiti Sends 18 Suspects in President Moïse’s 2021 Killing to the US
Key Facts
The 2021 assassination of Haiti’s president left a power vacuum that armed gangs have since filled. Haiti has now handed 18 of the suspects to the United States for trial.
Haiti’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security confirmed on Sunday 20 September 2026 the transfer of 18 detainees to the United States. They are accused over the killing of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021.
Why This Matters
Moïse, 53, was shot at his residence in July 2021, and his wife was critically injured, Al Jazeera reported. Gangs now control roughly 90% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and Haiti has held no national election since.
The Haitian case has not reached trial in five years, hampered by gang violence and judges’ resignations. Al Jazeera reported that the plot was organised largely from southern Florida.
Haiti’s government cited “major difficulties” in its own proceedings, Rhinews reported. It said the US case had meanwhile produced arrests, prosecutions and convictions.
Since February 2026, Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé has been Haiti’s sole executive authority, Security Council Report says. Elections are scheduled for 13 December 2026, which would be the country’s first since 2016.
Gang violence killed 1,408 people between April and June 2026 alone, Al Jazeera reported. About 1.5 million Haitians are displaced inside their own country, according to UN figures.
A UN-authorised Gang Suppression Force, capped at 5,550 personnel, has a mandate that expires on 30 September 2026. Only 1,083 of its military personnel had deployed by 8 July, Security Council Report said.
Who Was Sent and Why
The group comprises Joseph Félix Badio and 17 Colombian nationals described as former soldiers, Rhinews and Rezo Nòdwès reported. Badio is a former Justice Ministry employee who worked in an anti-corruption unit, the Associated Press reported.
He was arrested in October 2023 after more than two years on the run, according to PBS. Justice Minister Patrick Pélissier signed the communiqué, citing extradition arrangements between Haiti and the United States.
The ministry said it authorised the transfer “on government instruction” to allow the suspects to be tried. Pélissier said the cooperation should help establish the facts “free from any influence”, Rezo Nòdwès reported.
The Colombians were among the suspects arrested in Haiti in July 2021, days after the attack, PBS reported. Haitian police said at the time that 28 foreigners carried out the attack, 26 of them Colombians.
The communiqué said several people detained in Haiti also face US indictments or warrants in the case. The ministry said evidence from the US case should also feed Haiti’s own inquiry through mutual legal assistance.
How the Plot Unfolded
Moïse governed amid a dispute over his term, with opponents arguing that it had ended in February 2021. Delayed legislative elections had left parliament largely defunct, which complicated the succession after his death.
US prosecutors allege that CTU Security, a Florida firm owned by Antonio Intriago, recruited the Colombian former soldiers. Investigators said Walter Veintemilla’s Florida company, Worldwide Investment Development Group, raised money for the operation.
At trial, the defence argued the men believed they were enforcing a Haitian court order to remove Moïse, not kill him. The trial took place in federal court in Miami, where the jury delivered its verdict on 8 May 2026.
The US Case So Far
US prosecutors in the Southern District of Florida have indicted 30 people over the plot. “Today marks the next major phase in our pursuit of accountability,” said US Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones.
In May 2026, a jury convicted four men of conspiring to kill or kidnap Haiti’s leader and supporting the plot. They are Arcángel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, Walter Veintemilla and James Solages, PBS reported.
At least five other defendants have pleaded guilty and received life sentences, according to the AP. Christian Sanon, a Haitian-American who allegedly hoped to replace Moïse, still awaits trial.
Former Haitian senator John Joël Joseph received a life sentence in December 2023 after admitting he helped obtain vehicles and firearms. Rodolphe Jaar, a Haitian-Chilean businessman, was sentenced to life in June 2023 after pleading guilty, CNN reported.
In June 2024, a federal judge ordered six convicted defendants to pay Martine Moïse about US$5.3 million in restitution. “We will follow the evidence wherever it leads, to those who financed it,” Quiñones said on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported.
Why Haiti’s Own Case Stalled
Haiti’s investigation passed through several investigating judges, and four had withdrawn by February 2022, MercoPress reported. In February 2024, a Haitian judge charged 51 people, including Martine Moïse and former acting prime minister Claude Joseph.
On 13 October 2025, an appeals court overturned those indictments and ordered a new investigation. Gangs had also seized the downtown Port-au-Prince courthouse, and judges received death threats, the AP reported.
Reactions in Haiti and Colombia
A Haitian human rights activist called the transfer “a disgrace for the Haitian justice system”, Al Jazeera reported. Relatives of the Colombians said the move caught them by surprise, according to the AP.
“We never imagined that the United States would have taken them so suddenly,” said Diana Marcela Arbeláez Llano, a suspect’s wife. Families have described the Colombian detainees, held in Haiti since 2021, as very sick, the AP reported.
Pélissier framed the handover as a decision “to strengthen cooperation with the American judicial authorities”, Rezo Nòdwès reported. The reports reviewed by The Rio Times carried no comment from Colombia’s government on the transfer.
What It Means If You Follow Haiti
For Haitians, the transfer offers the prospect of a verdict their own courts have not delivered in five years. It also moves the search for whoever financed and ordered the killing to a US courtroom.
For the large Haitian community in South Florida, the hearings will take place close to home, in federal court. For Colombia, the case keeps attention on retired soldiers recruited abroad as private security contractors.
What Is Not Yet Known
The specific charges each of the 18 will face have not been published. It is not known whether any of them will plead guilty or contest the case.
Haiti has not said whether the new inquiry its appeals court ordered in October 2025 will continue. It is not known when the 18 will first appear before a federal judge in Florida.
It remains unclear whether US prosecutors will identify who ultimately ordered and paid for the killing. It is not known whether the Security Council will renew the anti-gang force before its mandate lapses.
It is also unclear whether the 18 will be tried together or in separate cases. All 18 are presumed innocent until a court rules otherwise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does this transfer matter?
Haiti has not held a trial in five years, while US courts have convicted several plotters. Sending 18 more suspects moves most of the case to Florida.
Who was sent to the United States?
Joseph Félix Badio, a former Haitian Justice Ministry employee, and 17 Colombians described as former soldiers. Haiti’s Justice Ministry confirmed the transfer on 20 September 2026.
Why is Haiti not trying them itself?
The government cited major difficulties, including gang violence and threats to judges. An appeals court also overturned Haiti’s 2024 indictments in October 2025.
Has anyone been convicted over Moïse’s killing?
Yes, in the United States. A Florida jury convicted four men in May 2026, and at least five others pleaded guilty.
Sources: Associated Press via Local 10, 18 suspects extradited, Al Jazeera, suspects flown to Florida, PBS NewsHour, Badio and the May convictions, Rhinews, Justice Ministry communiqué, Haitian Times, appeals court reopens the investigation, Security Council Report, Haiti September 2026 forecast, Al Jazeera, Haiti calls for renewal of anti-gang force, CNN, former senator sentenced to life, MercoPress, fourth judge withdraws from the case, Wikipedia, assassination of Jovenel Moïse, Wikipedia, Martine Moïse, Rezo Nòdwès, justice minister confirms transfer
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