Status boundary: this page distinguishes convictions and guilty pleas from indictments, allegations and ongoing trials. It does not treat a charge as proof, extend one defendant’s conviction to another person or claim that every organizer has been identified.
The attack on the presidential residence
Moïse, Haiti’s president since 2017, was killed after an armed group entered his private residence in the Port-au-Prince area. Martine Moïse survived serious gunshot injuries. The killing of a sitting head of state immediately produced parallel investigations in Haiti, Colombia and the United States, reflecting the nationalities of alleged participants and the planning activity later documented in South Florida.
The basic event is not in dispute: Moïse died in the residence on 7 July 2021. What required careful separation was the responsibility of individual actors. Early arrests, public accusations and theories about motive could not substitute for judgments. The record later became more concrete as defendants entered pleas, evidence was tested at trial and courts imposed sentences.
What the 2026 federal trial established
According to the U.S. Department of Justice’s 8 May 2026 verdict announcement, a Miami federal jury convicted Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, Walter Veintemilla and James Solages for roles in the conspiracy. The trial record described a plan developed in early 2021 to remove Moïse and install a preferred successor, with prospective government contracts among the expected benefits.
The Justice Department said the group recruited participants in the United States, Colombia and Haiti, including former Colombian soldiers. Prosecutors presented evidence that plans moved from proposed kidnapping scenarios to an attack on the residence. The jury’s verdict covered the four defendants and the charged conduct tried in that courtroom; it did not adjudicate every person later named in the expanding investigation.
Trial evidence described digital communications used to coordinate the operation, financing and equipment movements, surveillance of the residence and ballistic evidence associated with the assault team. Reporting these categories helps explain why the verdict rests on more than a narrative supplied after the event. It remains important, however, not to imply that every contested factual claim in related cases was decided by that jury.
Earlier guilty pleas and sentences
Before the four-defendant verdict, several alleged co-conspirators had pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court. The Justice Department said eight co-conspirators had entered guilty pleas by May 2026 and six testified during the trial. Individual plea agreements and sentences establish responsibility only for the people and offenses covered by those proceedings.
One example is Rodolphe Jaar, who pleaded guilty and received a life sentence in June 2023 for participation in events leading to the assassination. Other defendants also entered pleas in the Miami prosecution. These outcomes are strong evidence of adjudicated participation, but they do not justify describing every detained or indicted person as guilty.
The financial record also developed separately. On 23 July 2026, Keegan Harricharan received a 20-year federal sentence after pleading guilty to a money-laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors said fraudulently obtained pandemic-relief funds moved through accounts that helped finance the plot. That sentence was for money laundering; this archive does not relabel it as a murder conviction.
The May 2026 jury verdict
The jury convicted Pretel Ortiz, Intriago, Veintemilla and Solages of conspiracy and material-support offenses connected to killing or kidnapping a person outside the United States, along with related counts. The Justice Department stated that the four faced maximum penalties of life imprisonment, with sentencing to be determined by the federal judge.
A verdict is a major accountability milestone, but procedural precision still matters. “Convicted” is not the same as “sentenced,” and neither term automatically describes defendants whose trials were separate. This page therefore states the May verdict and does not assume the later sentence unless a reliable final source records it.
New defendants and the September 2026 proceedings
On 21 September 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced that 18 defendants had been transported from Haiti to Miami. The office said a grand jury had indicted 30 defendants for alleged roles involving the assassination conspiracy, fraud or money laundering. Its own notice emphasized the controlling legal boundary: an indictment is an allegation and every defendant is presumed innocent unless proved guilty.
Reuters reported that Christian Emmanuel Sanon’s federal trial began on 28 September 2026. Sanon pleaded not guilty to charges that included conspiracy to kill or kidnap Moïse. Prosecutors alleged that he helped organize the plot and hoped to succeed Moïse; his defense disputed his knowledge of a murder plan. Because the trial had only begun when this page was published, no outcome is inferred.
The September transfers significantly expanded the U.S. courtroom record, but expansion is not completion. Some people charged in the new indictment had not been tried, and the prosecution itself said the investigation was continuing.
The Haitian proceedings
Haiti’s investigation has faced judicial turnover, threats, insecurity and disruption of court operations. In 2024, an investigating judge issued a report indicting roughly 50 people. Those accusations were contested, and an indictment is not a conviction. Later review and renewed questioning meant that the procedural path remained unsettled rather than culminating in a final Haitian trial judgment.
Associated Press reporting in 2025 described suspects held in Haiti without a completed trial and an inquiry impaired by gang violence and institutional collapse. The transfer of 18 defendants in September 2026 shifted major parts of the accountability process to Miami. It did not by itself resolve the Haitian cases or validate every earlier accusation.
What is established and what remains unresolved
Established through reliable records
- Jovenel Moïse was killed at his private residence on 7 July 2021, and Martine Moïse was seriously wounded.
- Multiple defendants pleaded guilty in U.S. federal proceedings and received sentences.
- A Miami jury convicted four defendants on 8 May 2026 for roles in the conspiracy.
- A separate money-laundering prosecution produced a 20-year sentence in July 2026.
- Eighteen newly charged defendants were transported from Haiti to the United States in September 2026.
- Sanon pleaded not guilty and his federal trial began on 28 September 2026.
Not finally resolved
- The guilt of defendants whose cases remained pending.
- The complete hierarchy of organizers, financiers and operational participants.
- Whether one person alone commissioned or controlled the entire plot.
- The final outcome of the Haitian proceedings and the new U.S. prosecutions.
Why the archive classifies the case as unsolved / partially adjudicated
Calling the case wholly unsolved would erase meaningful court outcomes. Calling it solved would overstate what those outcomes cover. “Unsolved / partially adjudicated” records both realities: specific defendants have admitted or been found guilty of serious conduct connected to the assassination, while additional alleged participants and the wider commissioning record remained before courts or investigators.
This status should be revisited when pending trials produce judgments, sentences are imposed, appeals alter outcomes or Haitian proceedings reach a final disposition. Until then, the narrow classification is more accurate than a single-word label.
Verified timeline
- Early 2021 — The conspiracy described by U.S. prosecutors develops through meetings, recruitment, finance and planning.
- 7 July 2021 — Jovenel Moïse is killed at his residence; Martine Moïse is wounded.
- 2022–2023 — Defendants are transferred to U.S. custody, enter pleas and begin receiving sentences.
- June 2023 — Rodolphe Jaar receives a life sentence after pleading guilty.
- February 2024 — A Haitian investigating judge issues a report indicting roughly 50 people; allegations remain contested.
- 8 May 2026 — A Miami federal jury convicts Pretel Ortiz, Intriago, Veintemilla and Solages.
- 23 July 2026 — Keegan Harricharan receives a 20-year sentence for money laundering connected to plot financing.
- 21 September 2026 — U.S. authorities announce the transport of 18 defendants from Haiti to Miami.
- 28 September 2026 — Sanon’s federal trial begins; he has pleaded not guilty.
Frequently asked questions
When was Jovenel Moïse assassinated?
He was killed at his private residence near Port-au-Prince during the early hours of 7 July 2021. First Lady Martine Moïse was seriously wounded.
Has anyone been convicted in connection with the plot?
Yes. Several defendants pleaded guilty and received sentences, and a federal jury convicted four more defendants on 8 May 2026. The archive limits those findings to the conduct and defendants addressed by the relevant judgments.
Why is the case not marked fully solved?
Additional defendants and alleged organizers were still facing proceedings, while the Haitian investigation had not produced a final judgment resolving the full chain of responsibility.
What happened in September 2026?
U.S. authorities announced that 18 defendants had been transported from Haiti to Miami to face charges. Christian Emmanuel Sanon's separate federal trial began on 28 September; he pleaded not guilty.
Are charges the same as convictions?
No. An indictment records allegations to be tested in court. A defendant is presumed innocent unless guilt is established through a plea or verdict that applies to that individual.
Does this page identify a single mastermind?
No. The verified record establishes responsibility for specific convicted participants, but ongoing and contested proceedings do not support a definitive claim that one person alone commissioned or controlled the entire plot.
Sources and source-quality review
The account prioritizes court-linked U.S. Department of Justice releases for convictions, pleas, sentences and charges, then uses Reuters and Associated Press to check the current procedural position and the Haitian investigation. Prosecutorial statements are attributed as such; pending allegations are not presented as judicial findings.
- U.S. Department of Justice — Four defendants convicted8 May 2026 · jury verdict, trial evidence and offense boundaries
- U.S. Attorney’s Office — Rodolphe Jaar sentenced13 June 2023 · guilty plea and life sentence
- U.S. Attorney’s Office — Harricharan money-laundering sentence23 July 2026 · financial conduct and 20-year sentence
- U.S. Attorney’s Office — 18 defendants transported to Miami21 September 2026 · newly unsealed charges and presumption-of-innocence notice
- Reuters — Sanon trial begins28 September 2026 · current trial status and defense position
- Associated Press — Haitian investigation and indictments20 February 2024 · judicial report, contested allegations and procedural context
- Associated Press — stalled Haitian proceedings15 June 2025 · custody, renewed inquiry and institutional obstacles
Status note
Reviewed through 29 September 2026. The classification reflects convictions and pleas already entered while preserving the presumption of innocence for pending defendants. It should be updated when the September 2026 prosecutions or Haitian proceedings reach verifiable outcomes.
← Return to the Haiti archive