Haitian police call government allegations implicated in Jovenel Mose’s death “a lie”

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Haitian police have dismissed allegations that government officials were involved in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, calling them “lies”.

Caracol News, a private Colombia-based television station, claimed that acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph was responsible for the attack on Moïse’s home on July 7 that killed the president and injured his wife.

“I formally deny these allegations,” said Léon Charles, head of the Haitian National Police.

Charles said the reports were “a lie” and that police had no evidence to support the claims.

“The police warn against any propaganda creating a diversion,” he said.

For more Associated Press reporting, see below.

People pay their respects outside the presidential palace in Port-au-Prince on July 14, 2021, following the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise in early July 7, 2021. Haitian police have denied allegations that current government officials were reportedly implicated in the assassination. Valérie Baeriswyl / AFP via Getty Images

Haitian authorities have also not been very forthcoming with information about who may be behind the murder, suggesting that media reports implicating current officials have struck a chord within the government.

Charles also said the chief of Moïse’s security service, Dimitri Hérard, was removed from his post and taken into solitary detention after officials questioned him. The police had announced his detention in recent days. Charles said authorities would meet with him for a third time before deciding on next steps.

Hérard was not officially named as a suspect in the investigation, but many Haitians wondered how attackers could have invaded the president’s house and killed him without injuring those charged with protecting him.

The press conference came a day after the Colombian TV station aired a report which it said was based on information from FBI sources and Haitian authorities as well as phone calls, photos and reports. testimonies from people accused of participating in the conspiracy.

Joseph, the acting prime minister, was about to be replaced when the assassination took place. Moïse had appointed him to this post in April following the resignation of Joseph Jouthe, who held the post for a little over a year.

Two days before the assassination, Moses announced that he had chosen a new prime minister, neurosurgeon Ariel Henry. But the new prime minister was yet to be sworn in by July 7, and Joseph insisted he is in charge of government, a claim that has been recognized by the United States and others.

Charles said police arrested 23 people in the murder, including 18 former Colombian soldiers, three Haitians and two Haitian-Americans. Police also issued seven arrest warrants, searched 10 buildings, conducted 27 interrogations and placed four high-ranking police officers in solitary confinement, he said.

He added that the investigation received assistance from the FBI and foreign countries he did not name.

Haitian Police Director General Léon Charles listens to a journalist’s question during a press conference at police headquarters in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Thursday, July 15, 2021. Charles denied a report by Caracol news, a private Colombia-based television station, that interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph was the mastermind behind the July 7 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise. Matias Delacroix / AP Photo

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