4 people convicted of conspiracy in US trial tied to 2021 assassination of Haiti’s president – Image for illustrative purposes only (Image credits: Pixabay)
Miami – A federal jury in South Florida convicted four men on Friday of conspiracy in the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, a killing that triggered widespread political upheaval and empowered criminal gangs across the Caribbean nation. The verdict followed a trial that highlighted how planning and financing for the plot originated in the United States. Prosecutors showed that the defendants sought to install their own preferred leader in Haiti while advancing personal financial interests.
The Men and Their Convictions
Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, Walter Veintemilla and James Solages each received guilty verdicts on charges of conspiring to kill or kidnap Haiti’s elected president and providing material support for the operation. The jury also found them guilty of violating the U.S. Neutrality Act. All four face possible life sentences at a future hearing. Ortiz and Intriago led two South Florida companies known collectively as CTU, while Veintemilla headed Worldwide Capital Lending Group. Solages served as the group’s representative in Haiti. A fifth individual, Christian Sanon, remains scheduled for a separate trial.
How the Plot Unfolded
On July 7, 2021, roughly two dozen foreign mercenaries, most of them Colombian, stormed Moïse’s residence near Port-au-Prince. The president was killed and his wife, Martine Moïse, was wounded before being flown to the United States for medical care. Prosecutors argued that the defendants had selected Sanon, a dual Haitian-American citizen, as the intended replacement and had financed the mission from Florida. Martine Moïse testified early in the trial. She described waking to gunfire after midnight and turning to her husband in bed. “Honey, we are dead,” he replied, according to her account through a Creole interpreter.
Defense Claims and Haiti’s Ongoing Crisis
Defense lawyers maintained that the four men were misled into believing they held a legitimate Haitian judicial warrant. They portrayed the defendants as participants in what they viewed as a lawful effort to remove a president who had remained in office beyond his term. Prosecutors countered that the group acted for personal gain and political influence. At least five other individuals have already pleaded guilty in the same conspiracy and are serving life sentences. In Haiti, 20 additional suspects, including 17 Colombian former soldiers, face charges, though gang violence and a weakened court system have slowed progress on that investigation. The Miami convictions represent one of the few completed legal outcomes tied to the assassination.