Taiwan announced on Friday that 11 suspects detained in the investigation into the assassination of Haiti's President were arrested by Haitian police inside the Taiwanese embassy compound in the capital Port-au-Prince, where they were hiding. Taiwanese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou stated that the embassy was closed on Wednesday "for security reasons" following the murder. She added to Agence France-Presse, “On the morning of July 8, the embassy’s security apparatus discovered that a group of armed individuals had breached the embassy’s grounds.” She noted, “Security personnel immediately notified embassy staff and the Haitian police.”
Ou continued, “At the request of the Haitian government and in order to assist in apprehending the suspects, the embassy granted the Haitian police permission to access the embassy vicinity.” The Taiwanese embassy in Port-au-Prince, located near the residence of the late President Moïse, described the armed individuals in a statement on its website as “mercenaries” suspected of involvement in the assassination plot.
The Taiwanese embassy stated that "the police managed to arrest 11 suspects," clarifying that it "unhesitatingly" agreed to the Haitian police's request to enter the embassy compound. The embassy confirmed that "the operation was successfully carried out" and described the assassination as "brutal and barbaric." Haiti is one of the 15 countries in the world that still recognizes Taiwan diplomatically instead of the People's Republic of China, which considers the Asian island a part of its territory.
On Thursday evening, the Haitian police announced that the armed group responsible for the president's assassination consisted of 26 Colombians and two Americans of Haitian descent. Haitian police chief Léon Charles stated at a press conference that "the commando team is made up of 28 attackers, including 26 Colombians," adding that "we found the weapons and materials used by the attackers," expressing his determination to locate the other eight assailants. The U.S. State Department did not confirm the detention of the two American citizens but said on Thursday that it had agreed to assist Haitian police in the investigation.
Meanwhile, the attorney general in Port-au-Prince announced on Thursday that his office had summoned the security officials responsible for President Moïse following his easy assassination. The government commissioner in the capital, Bedford Claude, stated that "the central judicial police authority was authorized to interview all security personnel close to President Jovenel Moïse,” specifying that two senior security officials associated with the president had been summoned for questioning on July 13 and 14. Claude questioned the apparent lack of a clear response from those responsible for ensuring Moïse's safety, who was shot approximately 12 times during the night in his home.
Claude stated, “I spent a day at the president's residence. I did not see any victims among the police, only the president and his wife were injured. If you are responsible for the president's security, where were you? What did you do to spare the president this fate?”
