Four South Florida men were convicted in a Miami federal court on Friday for conspiring to kill or kidnap Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, Walter Veintemilla, and James Solages were found guilty of providing material support for the plot and violating the U.S. Neutrality Act, facing possible life sentences.
Prosecutors alleged that South Florida served as a central hub for planning and financing the 2021 assassination. The men hired approximately two dozen mercenaries, primarily former Colombian soldiers, and supplied them with money, weapons, ammunition, and tactical vests. On July 7, 2021, the mercenaries attacked Moïse's home near Port-au-Prince, where the 53-year-old president was shot dead in his bedroom. Moïse's wife, Martine, was wounded during the attack and later testified that her husband's final words to her were, "Honey, we are dead."
The conspirators aimed to replace Moïse with a leader of their choosing, specifically favoring dual Haitian-American citizen Christian Sanon, to enrich themselves under a new government. Ortiz and Intriago were principals of the Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU), while Veintemilla was a principal of Worldwide Capital Lending Group, both based in South Florida. Solages served as a CTU representative in Haiti who coordinated with Sanon. Defense attorneys argued that the men were manipulated into taking blame for an internal coup and believed they were acting on a legitimate warrant to liberate Haiti from a president who had overstayed his term.
The assassination plunged Haiti into extraordinary turmoil and a yearslong spiral of gang violence and mayhem, leaving a gaping political vacuum. While at least five other individuals have already pleaded guilty and are serving life sentences, Sanon will face trial at a later date. Separately, 20 people, including 17 Colombian soldiers, face charges in Haiti, though the investigation there has been stalled by death threats and a crumbling judicial system.