Assassination of Jovenel Moïse: lawyer Phénil Gordon Désir arrested in Pétion-Ville
Lawyer Phénil Gordon Désir, who has been the subject of a search notice since 2021, was arrested on Wednesday in a supermarket in Pétion-Ville.
End of flight for Phénil Gordon Désir, suspect in the murder of Jovenel Moïse
The Haitian National Police (PNH) apprehended lawyer Phénil Gordon Désir on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, late in the afternoon, in a supermarket in Pétion-Ville. According to rezonodwes.com, the arrest followed surveillance conducted by agents of the Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (DCPJ), which had issued a search notice against him as early as July 2021.
Désir, leader of the political party "Ayiti 2054", is suspected of alleged involvement in the planning and logistical support of the plot that led to the assassination of president Jovenel Moïse, who was killed on 7 July 2021 at his residence in Pèlerin 5. Located in the supermarket, he was apprehended in implementation of the search notice that had been in effect against him for five years.
The Miami Herald had previously reported his alleged financial involvement: a transfer of 15,000 US dollars was said to have been made on 3 June 2021, in connection with the acquisition of ammunition and equipment intended for the group revolving around Christian Emmanuel Sanon.
The arrest comes in a context of accelerated judicial proceedings. In September 2026, Joseph Félix Badio and a group of 17 Colombian mercenaries accused in the execution of the crime had been transferred to the United States. Several defendants have since given their testimonies on the circumstances of the regicide, giving fresh impetus to the investigation conducted by judge Denis Cyprien Pierre.
The question of a possible transfer of Phénil Gordon Désir to the United States, like other defendants, remains open at this stage of the proceedings.
Source: Google News HT — Crime