(Reuters) -Joseph Vincent, a former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) informant, was sentenced to life in prison by a U.S. court on Friday for his role in the 2021 assassination of Haiti’s president.
A Haitian-American national, Vincent admitted to providing aid in the plot to kill Haitian President Jovenel Moise in his home, including advice on the political landscape and meetings with key community leaders.
Vincent is among 11 defendants in the case, which includes former soldiers and Colombian businessmen accused of helping to provide funds and weapons and carry out the nighttime attack.
The gunmen had reportedly masqueraded as DEA agents at the time of the attack, although the DEA later said that Vincent and another Haitian-American, James Solages, had not acted on behalf of the agency.
Vincent will be held in a Florida prison, the court ruled.
Moise’s assassination has thrown the Caribbean nation into a destabilizing power vacuum, with violent armed gangs massively expanding their reach.
Last Friday, the United Nations said January was Haiti’s most violent month in more than two years, with more than 1,100 people killed, injured or kidnapped in the month.
Anti-government protests erupted in the streets leading up to Feb. 7, the day unelected Prime Minister Ariel Henry had previously vowed to resign, though he later backtracked on that pledge.
Henry said free and fair elections would be held once security conditions were re-established.