Eighteen suspects extradited to US over Haiti president killing

Eighteen suspects in the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise were extradited to the United States on Sunday, flown from Port-au-Prince to Florida on a military flight to face federal charges. The transfer marks a significant step in a long-running international investigation into the killing, which plunged Haiti into a prolonged political and security crisis. The suspects are accused of orchestrating a transnational plot to kill Moise from U.S. soil. Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of Florida have argued that the conspiracy was primarily engineered, financed, and staged in South Florida. The suspects now face trial in a federal court in Miami. The extradition follows earlier legal developments in the case. In May, a federal jury in Florida convicted four men in the killing, and at least five other defendants have pleaded guilty and are serving life sentences. U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quinones, who is directing the investigation, stated that the extradition represents the next major phase in the pursuit of accountability.