PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The Central Directorate of the Judicial Police is questioning Joseph Felix Badio, a key suspect in the July 7, 2021, assassination of President Jovenel Moise.
Badio, 60, a former official of the Anti-Corruption Unit, who was dismissed on May 17, 2021, for serious breaches of ethical rules, is suspected of ordering the assassination of President Moise and had been on the run since his murder at his private residence overlooking the capital, Port au Prince.
Moise was murdered in his bedroom by Colombian mercenaries in 2021. Most have since been arrested or killed.
Badio is accused of ordering hitmen to carry out the attack. He is charged with murder, attempted murder, and armed robbery.
A spokesperson for the Haitian National Police (PNH), Inspector Gary Desrosiers, confirmed that Badio was caught while driving out of a supermarket car park in the capital.
Media reports said that some of the hitmen arrested hours after the killing alleged that Badio had given them their orders.
The Justice Department in Washington has accused several South Florida business people of orchestrating the assassination so they could install a puppet as president and secure lucrative contracts with the Haitian government.
No U.S. charges have been announced against Badio, who owns a house in Rockland County, N.Y., but others implicated in the case have been convicted in the U.S. They include John Joel Joseph, a former Haitian senator and Haitian-Chilean businessman Rodolphe Jaar.
The U.S. has also accused Venezuelan-American Antonio Intriago, the owner of Florida-based CTU Security, of hiring the hitmen. He faces several charges, including conspiracy to kill or kidnap.
Moise’s assassination increased instability in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country. The United Nations Security Council recently ratified deploying an international force to be led by Kenya to help restore peace and security.
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