Widow of former Haiti president charged in his killing

The widow of the former president of Haiti has been charged in connection with his murder. Jovenel Moïse was shot dead in July of 2021 when armed suspects broke into his bedroom — killing him and injuring his wife, Martine Moïse. But now a judge says Martine was an accomplice in the killing. She is among 51 people to be indicted.

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According to the indictment, Martine conspired with the former Prime Minister Claude Joseph, to kill her husband. A lawyer for Martine told the New York Times before the charges were announced that “she was a victim” and remains in hiding. Some argue the charges result from politics, accusing current Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was appointed to replace Joseph as prime minister just days before the assassination, of going after his critics.

However, a spokesperson from Henry’s office reportedly told the media that Judge Walther Wesser Voltaire, who issued a 122-page ruling that concluded Martine conspired in her husband’s killing, was “free to issue his order in accordance with the law and his conscience.”

A separate U.S. investigation into the murder continues in Miami, where 11 men have been charged. Six of the 11 have pleaded guilty to orchestrating a plot to send Colombian mercenaries to kidnap the former Haitian president, a plan that upgraded from kidnapping to murder at the last minute, according to a Reuters report.