Update | Palacios charged in US over assassination of Haitian president
Published:Tuesday | January 4, 2022 | 3:10 PM
The United States Department of Justice is reporting that former Colombian military officer Mario Antonio Palacios was today charged in connection with the killing of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.
He was arrested based on a criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida.
The department says Palacios, 43, is charged with conspiracy to commit murder or kidnapping outside the US and providing material support resulting in death, knowing or intending that such material support would be used to prepare for or carry out the conspiracy to kill or kidnap.
As alleged in the complaint, which was unsealed today, the charges relate to Moïse's assassination in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on July 7, 2021.
It is being alleged that Palacios and others, including a group of approximately 20 other Colombian citizens and a group of Haiti-based dual Haitian-American citizens, participated in a plot to kidnap or kill the Haitian President, with one conspirator (“Co-conspirator #1”) travelling to the US on June 28, 2021, to, among other things, provide other individuals with a written request for assistance to further the plot relating to Moïse.
As alleged in the complaint, while the plot initially focused on conducting a kidnapping of the president as part of a purported arrest operation, it ultimately resulted in a plot to kill him.
The complaint affidavit alleges that, on July 7, 2021, Palacios and others entered the president's residence in Haiti with the intent and purpose of killing him.
The justice department says co-conspirator #1, a dual Haitian-American citizen, was subsequently arrested by Haitian authorities and remains in custody in Haiti.
Palacios eluded arrest and travelled to Jamaica.
Palacios was deported from Jamaica on Monday for his homeland.
According to the justice department, during a layover in Panama, he agreed to travel to the US.
It says he is currently in custody and will appear in court for his initial appearance later today.
If convicted of the charges in the complaint, Palacios faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.