On Wednesday, Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro warned Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry to beware of the personnel sent by the Colombian government to investigate the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, which was carried out by Colombian mercenaries on July 7.
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“Far-right President Ivan Duque has sent personnel to protect the mercenaries who perpetrated the crime and divert the investigations of the assassination", Maduro said, adding that the Duque administration operates with the mafia and is used to supporting terrorist actions in other countries.
Haitian police and Colombian intelligence agencies have formed a special commission to coordinate the investigation. Colombia’s Police Chief General Jorge Vargas yet emphasized that the Haitian police were in charge of the investigation.
So far, 18 retired Colombian military personnel have been detained in Haiti. Some of them had previously received military training from the United States as part of its security cooperation programs. Other three Colombian mercenaries died in a police operation, and three more remain at large.
President Moise’s security Chief Dimitri Herard is also being held at a police station in Port-au-Prince and remains under investigation for the murder.
Colombian mercenaries had previously taken part in other international military operations. Private contractors from the United States and the United Kingdom had employed hundreds of former Colombian military personnel to support wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Yemen.
The 1999 Colombia Plan turned this country into the largest receiver of U.S. military aid in Latin America and triggered the creation of private security companies in its territory.