The trial of Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a 67-year-old Haitian American pastor, commenced this week in the US District Court in Miami. Sanon stands accused of playing a significant role in orchestrating the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in 2021. The proceedings began more than two years after Moïse was tragically killed at his residence near Port-au-Prince, further deepening the political instability of the nation. Read more about the trial and its context here.
Sanon faces eight charges, including conspiracy to kidnap or kill a person outside the US, and he could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted. According to prosecutors, Sanon harbored political aspirations in Haiti and was supposedly positioned by members of the Miami-based security firm CTU Security as Moïse’s successor. In return for his rise to power, Sanon was expected to award the firm lucrative contracts pertaining to infrastructure, security forces, and military equipment deployment in Haiti.
The conspiracy is alleged to have begun taking shape in April 2021, during a meeting in South Florida. This meeting included a former Haitian senator and several American businessmen, who discussed potential regime change in Haiti. CTU Security is believed to have recruited around 20 Colombian nationals, skilled in military operations, to execute the assassination plan. Moïse was ultimately killed in his home during the early hours of July 7, 2021.
Since being apprehended by Haitian authorities shortly after the assassination, Sanon has been detained and later transferred to US custody under additional accusations filed in February 2023. The Department of Justice has indicted dozens in connection to the assassination, with some already convicted and serving life sentences. The turmoil following Moïse’s assassination has left Haiti without an elected president and has exacerbated an already critical political power vacuum. Armed groups took advantage of this situation to expand their control, affecting more than 80% of Port-au-Prince in 2023, coupled with a rise in sexual violence and forced displacement as noted by the Wilson Center.
In a poignant moment during the trial, Martine Moïse, the former First Lady of Haiti who survived being shot during the attack, provided testimony against the defendants. Her firsthand account of the harrowing event underscores the complexities and human dimensions inherent in this high-profile case.