Wife of President Jovenel Moïse pleads to international community for help

Haiti: The widow of assassinated President Jovenel Moïse of Haiti has called on the international community to track down those guilty for the shooting death of her husband during a night attack by suspected mercenaries at the President’s home.

Moïse’s assassination plunged the Caribbean nation, already plagued by famine and gang violence, further into chaos and made a search for the masterminds in America.

Martine Moïse wore a black dress and a sling in a room with bodyguards on Monday after the injuries she sustained during the attack, but she was afraid the progress would slow down.

“I feel the process is stopping a bit,” she said. “The people who did it are still there, and I do not know if their name will ever appear. Any country that can help, please help.”

Nearly two months after the murder of her husband on July 7, the most important aspects of the murder persist shrouded in mystery. Haitian police have detained more than three dozen suspects, including 18 Colombian mercenaries, an unknown Haitian-American doctor who they say is seeking to be president, and the head of Moïse’s security team.

But they made little evidence.

“The people (they arrested) did it, but someone gave the order, someone gave the money,” Moïse told.

She said she had spoken to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) twice and felt they could “find the people who are financing the heinous crime”.

As security concerns underwent the investigation in Haiti, one judge investigating the case resigned, citing concerns about his safety.

The first lady, Moïse, said Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was also affected by an earthquake in August that killed more than 2,000 people, should be elected as soon as possible to ensure stability.

“I think the advice my husband would give him is to hold an election. With the election, you can have peace, you can think long term,” she said.

Polls initially scheduled for September have been postponed until November, and some have speculated that they could slow down further after the quake.

“If they want elections to take place, they will do it,” Moïse said.

Moïse confirmed previous comments she made in interviews about her interest in being president herself, but said she would take care of her family first.

“I want to be elected president. I will not allow the president’s vision to die with him. With the earthquake, there is also a lot to do in Haiti,” she said.

Amid ongoing investigations and arrests, conspiracy theories about the murder in Haiti have been circulating for weeks.

Friends of the assassinated president told Reuters he feared for his life immediately before he was assassinated.

His wife said Monday that he had not spoken to her about a specific conspiracy against him.

“If he knew he would talk about it … but he never did,” she said. “Because they have Colombians, they have soldiers here in Haiti; they are here for something.”

She denies rumors on social media that Moïse chased away millions of cash in his official residence in the luxury suburb of Petion-Ville.

“It’s a president. There’s money. But the $48 million I heard on social media can not be true. Where in the room?”