Haiti President Jovenel Moise Assassination: 2 American Citizens, 15 Colombians Arrested
Two men, accused of being involved in the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, are being transported to the Petionville station in a police car in Port au Prince on July 8, 2021. - Police in Haiti have surrounded a group of possible suspects in the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, the UN envoy to Haiti said. Helen La Lime said from the Haitian capital that four members of a group that attacked the presidential palace Wednesday and shot the president have been killed by police and six others are in custody. VALERIE BAERISWYL/AFP via Getty Images

Haitian officials have arrested two American citizens, who are among alleged "foreign mercenaries" that assassinated Haiti President Jovenel Moise earlier this week.

They were identified as James Solages, 35, and Joseph Vincent, both American citizens of Haitian descent, Daily Mail reported.

According to Haitian police, 15 Colombians were also arrested during the raid on Jovenel Moise's home at Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, July 7. Officials have ramped up their search for the mastermind of the Haiti president's assassination.

Solanges reportedly lives in Fort Lauderdale and is the president of a charity in south Florida. He also claims to be a former bodyguard at Canada's embassy in Haiti. Vincent, on the other hand, lives in the Miami area. Officials said the two men were born in Haiti.

Léon Charles, chief of Haiti's National Police, now claims that police killed only three suspects after earlier reports claiming seven suspects were killed.

Charles said that eight other suspects are on the run. He also identified all of the dead and at-large suspects as Colombian.

The police chief noted that the foreigners came to the country to kill the Haiti president. The 26 Colombians and two Haitian Americans, who were among the foreign mercenaries, were identified through their passports.

Foreign Mercenaries Killed the Haiti President

The assassination plot against Jovenel Moise is still being investigated, even beyond the borders of Haiti. Colombian authorities confirmed that at least some of the arrested were former members of the Colombian army, Washington Post reported.

Colombian officials announced that they had also started an investigation into the alleged involvement of their nationals in the assassination of the Haiti president.

Colombia Defense Minister Diego Molano noted that Interpol had officially requested information on the six people responsible for the act.

Colombia is aiding with the investigation, with Colombia's national police head, Gen. Jorge Luis Vargas, saying that information about the suspects' finances, hours, and dates of flights will be forwarded to the authorities in Port-au-Prince.

The U.S. State Department said it was aware of reports of the American citizens' involvement in the assassination of Jovenel Moise. However, they could not confirm or comment.

Charles called for calm and asked the people to let the police do their work. He added that the cars belonging to the suspect torched by a mob are needed for evidence.

A crowd was reported to set fire to several abandoned cars with bullet holes. Officials believe that they belonged to the suspects, according to an NPR report.

The cars did not have license plates, with one of them having an empty box of bullets and some water. Meanwhile, officials have yet to address the motive for the assassination of the Haiti president.

Assassination of Haiti President Jovenel Moise

The attack against the Haiti president came just one day after Jovenel Moise named Ariel Henry as the new prime minister.

Henry was set to take over from Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph once he builds his government members. Joseph said that Henry was the designated prime minister. However, he added that Henry never took office.

The interim prime minister said he was the one in office, citing the law and the constitution, Business Insider reported.

Henry contradicted Joseph's claims, saying that he was the prime minister in office. But Joseph had assumed power over the country. He also declared a "state of siege," which has given him absolute power.

Lilas Desquiron, a Haitian writer who was a culture minister from 2001 to 2004, said that no one understands what is happening right now.

Constitutional experts and diplomats are worried about a possible collapse that could lead to violence or urge the resident to flee the country, New York Times reported.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Mary Webber

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