One of the suspects arrested in connection to the recent assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise was a former confidential source for the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the agency confirmed on Tuesday.
Joseph Vincent, a 55-year-old Florida resident, and James Solages, 35-year-old Haitian American Florida resident, were arrested last week by Haitian officials and have been charged with allegedly taking part in the assassination of Moise.
The DEA did not name which suspect was the informant for the agency, but it noted it was one of the two people arrested last week, adding that the suspects “were not acting on behalf of DEA.”
“Following the assassination of President Moïse, the suspect reached out to his contacts at the DEA,” the agency said in a statement. “A DEA official assigned to Haiti urged the suspect to surrender to local authorities and, along with a U.S. State Department official, provided information to the Haitian government that assisted in the surrender and arrest of the suspect and one other individual.”
HAITIAN DOCTOR WITH TIES TO FLORIDA ARRESTED AS ALLEGED LEADER OF MOISE ASSASSINATION
The informant suspect was arrested once before over two decades ago for allegedly providing false information to obtain a U.S. passport. Following the arrest, he became a source “at times” for the DEA, the agency told NBC.
A third Haitian American, Christian Emmanuel Sanon, was arrested on July 11 and accused of being a lead organizer of the attack.
On July 7, Moise was gunned down by armed intruders in his private residence outside of Port-au-Prince. Authorities in Haiti have been working to locate other suspects in connection to the attack since last week.
Solages and Vincent were arrested on suspicion of participating in the assassination last Wednesday. The two of them told a Haitian judge participating in the investigation that they served as translators and were not in the room when Moise was killed.
Haitian authorities have taken 21 men into custody for the assassination, many of whom are Colombian.
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The Washington Examiner contacted the DEA for additional comment but did not immediately receive a response.
