The first US prosecution stemming from the assassination of Jovenel Mose was brought by the Department of Justice on Tuesday.
Members of the Haitian police and forensics look for evidence outside of the presidential residence. The capital Port-au-prince as quiet on Wednesday morning with no extra security forces on patrol. Claude Joseph said he was now in charge of the country and urged the public to remain calm. VALERIE BAERISWYL/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images
The images are from the same source.
If Mario Antonio Palacios is found guilty of conspiracy to murder or kidnap Mose, he could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The DOJ says that Palacios is one of around 20 people who plotted to either kidnap or kill Mose, many of whom have been arrested by Haitian authorities, though Palacios is the only one to face U.S. charges.
Palacios admitted to the U.S. law enforcement that he was hired to help capture the president, and that he entered Mose's compound the night of the killing aware that the group's plan had shifted from a kidnapping to an assassination.
Palacios fled to Jamaica after the assassination and was deported to the United States.
The New York Times reported that Palacios would most likely plead not guilty at his upcoming trial.
In August, Palacios told the magazine Semana that he didn't know who killed the president of Haiti. Mose was already dead when Palacios entered the room where the president was shot, and he believed the plan was only to abduct him.
Mose was shot 12 times in his home in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince in the early hours of July 7. Martine Mose survived the attack, which she said was carried out by Spanish-speaking attackers. Four of the suspects were killed by the police and two of them were arrested after the assassination. The motive behind the assassination is not known, but officials believe that the attackers searched Mose's house for documents containing a list of Haitian politicians and business people involved in the country's drug trade. Mose was going to give the list to the U.S. government, according to advisers tasked with drafting it. Mose's wife told the Times she remembers the people who killed her husband looking through his files. Mose was going to rewrite Haiti's constitution and include a provision that would give the president immunity from prosecution if he took actions while in office. The assassination led to a power struggle for control of the Haitian government. The country has dealt with a 7.2 magnitude earthquake and a high-profile kidnapping of 17 U.S. and Canadian missionaries by a Haitian gang in the past year.
Surprising fact.
According to the Times, Palacios and the other military officers worked for a Florida-based private security firm that was initially tasked with protecting the leaders of Haiti. The security firm's costs were paid for by a Florida financier. The financiers and managers of the security firm were not charged with any crimes, and their lawyers told the Times they are innocent.
One person was killed and two others were injured in an assassination attempt on the Haitian prime minister on Saturday.
