Florida doctor tied to Haiti president assassination wanted his job
A prominent doctor from Florida linked to the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise had long sought to overthrow him — and even claimed he was backed by a UN official, according to reports.
Christian Emmanuel Sanon, 63, also wrote to a US State Department official last month announcing his intent, claiming Moise “has stolen the democracy” of Haiti, the Daily Mail reported on Monday.
“Moise has shown he intends to use his power, intimidation, and unending wide-scale brutality to broaden and extend his control of Haiti,” Sanon reportedly wrote to Julie Chung, acting assistant secretary of Western Hemisphere Affairs, according to the outlet.
The letter contends Sanon was handpicked after “extensive consultations” with leading Haitian leaders as the interim president.
The letter addressed to Chung was posted on a since-deleted website.
Sanon allegedly claimed on the site that a United Nations official was part of a coalition of supporters, as well as another man involved in “UN training globally.”
According to the Washington Post, Sanon landed in Haiti on a private plane last month to carry out the plot after recruiting a small army through a Miami-based security firm.
Haiti’s police chief, Leon Charles, told the outlet Sanon had “political objectives.”
Haitian authorities said the armed crew consisted of Colombian nationals and two other Haitian-Americans, who arrived at Moise’s home identifying themselves as US Drug Enforcement Administration operatives.
Moise was shot multiple times and killed in the July 7 attack, which also left Haitian First Lady Marine Moise critically wounded.
Police in Haiti said as many as 26 people were believed to be involved in the attack on the president, with seven killed during a follow-up raid by police.
Investigators are also probing whether they had help from inside Moise’s inner circle.
Colombian Gen. Jorge Luis Vargas, head of the South American country’s national police force, told the Washington Post that authorities there are investigating Dimitri Herard, head of security at the Haitian presidential palace.
Herard reported made several trips to Bogota in recent months, traveling to the Colombian capital through Ecuador, Panama and the Dominican Republic between January and May this year.
Police also raided Sanon’s home in Haiti and found 20 boxes of 9 mm and 12 mm ammunition, six pistol holsters, and license plates from the Dominican Republic.
In addition, they found a DEA cap, they said.
