MIAMI – The US government announced on Tuesday that it has charged one of the main suspects in The murder of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse as it was sealed a complaint revealed that federal authorities interviewed him months ago while he was hiding in Jamaica.
Mario Antonio Palacios, a 43-year-old former Colombian soldier, charged with conspiracy to commit murder or abduction outside of the United States and material assistance resulting in death, knowing or intending that such material assistance would be used to prepare or carry out the attempted murder or arrest toad.
He appeared in a federal court in Miami on Tuesday afternoon but pleaded not guilty. Palacios, who was wearing jeans, a gray t-shirt and handcuffs, told the judge he wanted to be appointed attorney. After answering questions regarding his income and assets, including his owning a home in Cali, Colombia and receiving a military pension of nearly $370, he was limited income-based advice.
Court-appointed attorney Alfredo Izaguirre told U.S. District Court Judge Alicia Otazo-Reyes that he asked Palacios to stay in custody because he has no immigration status, kinship or ties to the United States. The judge ordered remand, saying he would risk absconding.
Palacios is expected to appear in court again on January 31. Izaguirre said his client will likely plead not guilty during the preliminary hearing.
A complaint unsealed on Tuesday claimed that Palacios voluntarily spoke to US authorities in October and told them he was hired to Haiti to provide security and participate in an operation accused forced to arrest the president. He said the original plan was for the accomplice to wear a black hoodie, arrest Moïse at the airport in June and take him away by plane. Palacios later said that unnamed accomplices had told him as early as July 6, a day before the murders, of the plan to assassinate Moïse.
Palacios was arrested in Jamaica in October and is scheduled to fly to his native Colombia on Monday. However, Interpol informed Palacios during his stop in Panama that the US government was extraditing him, said General Jorge Luis Vargas, Colombia’s police chief.
He said that Colombia, Jamaica and the US were in contact to coordinate the deportation and extradition of Palacios to the US
The US Department of Justice said in a press release that Palacios agreed to travel to the United States during his stay in Panama.
Interpol has issued a red alert to Palacios for charges including attempted murder, armed robbery and conspiracy based on a request from the Haitian government.
The Haitian prime minister’s office issued a brief statement, saying only that it wanted justice to prevail in the July 7 assassination of Moïse at his residence. The office did not respond to additional questions including whether the government is still seeking to charge Palacios or extradite him to Haiti.
Former Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph said the US arrest of Palacios was a step in the right direction, but he called on local authorities to work with the US to extradite him so he can face justice in Haiti.
Palacios is one of more than a dozen Colombian veterans accused in the murder of Moïse. The Colombian government says the majority of former soldiers have been tricked into thinking they were on a legitimate mission to provide protection, and that only a few knew it was a criminal mission.
More than 40 suspects have been detained, including 19 former Colombian soldiers. Among them was Palacios, who had been a member of the Colombian army for 20 years.
