Haiti Extradites 18 Moise Assassination Suspects to US
Left 0%
Center 0%
Right 100%
0 left · 0 center · 2 right
What happened
Eighteen people accused of involvement in the July 7, 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse were extradited from Haiti to the United States over the weekend. Jason Reding Quiñones, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, said 30 suspects have been indicted in the case and that the 18 were flown to the U.S. on a military plane. Among those transferred was Joseph Felix Badio, a former Haitian Ministry of Justice employee who appeared in federal court in Miami; Haitian authorities said the group remaining in Haitian custody had included 17 Colombian former soldiers and Badio. Haiti’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security said it agreed to the transfers because Haitian proceedings have not produced a trial after five years, while U.S. cases have already produced arrests, prosecutions, and convictions. Nine people have already been convicted in the United States on related charges.
Sourcing check · Fully on the record · 3 articles
3 of 3 articles cite a named source for the story. It was on the record from the first report.
What these terms mean and how they're counted
- On the record · names a source 3 of 3
- On the record means the article cites a source by name for the story's main claim: a person, or an institution speaking officially, such as a company statement or a named agency's spokesperson. The opposite is an unnamed source. The count is how many of the counted articles cite at least one such source; the names are everyone named across them, each once however the articles spell it. Here: Jason Reding Quiñones, Jason Reding Quinones, Haiti's Ministry of Justice and Public Security and U.S. authorities
- Primary evidence · cites a document or data 0 of 3
- Primary evidence means the article cites a record you could check yourself: a court filing or ruling, a dataset or report, a recording or transcript, an official statement or press release, market data. A quote is not a document. The count is how many articles cite one. Here: None cited.
- Credits another outlet 0 of 3
- The article says the story comes from another outlet's reporting (“first reported by Reuters”). Those articles relay the story; they are not independent confirmation. Here: Each article presents its own reporting.
- Unnamed sources 0 of 3
- The main claim is attributed to people who are not identified: “people familiar with the matter”, “officials said”. The count is how many articles do this.
- How it developed
- When the first report landed and whether it named anyone; when the first named source and the first document appeared. Here: First report Sep 20, 21:20 UTC by Washington Examiner, naming its source.
- Not counted 0
- Opinion, analysis and video pieces, and articles too short to assess. Every count above is out of the counted articles. An article republished under a new headline is one article.
This is about who is cited, not whether the story is true. Each source below says what it names. How we count
BLINDSPOT.
Only right-leaning outlets are covering this story
— the other side's media is silent.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
Left-leaning coverage has not reported the extradition of these suspects. Right-leaning coverage describes suspects in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse being sent to Florida for trial. Breitbart carries the Haitian justice ministry’s line that its own case “has not, to date, led to the holding of a trial.” Readers who see only the silent side miss the transfer and Haiti’s admission that it never got the killing into a courtroom.
Among right-leaning outlets the emphasis splits. Washington Examiner opens on the transport and a military plane. Breitbart instead dwells on the U.S. attorney’s vow to pursue those who financed the attack and on Colombian families who said they were given no advance notice.
Who among the accused is still not in a courtroom, and who paid for the assassination?
Bottom line
Left-leaning outlets have published nothing on Haiti sending eighteen Moïse assassination suspects to Florida, a move Breitbart links to Port-au-Prince never holding a trial.
The receipts — 6 facts one side's coverage lacks
- Haiti’s Ministry of Justice said the Haitian procedure has not led to the holding of a trial after five years
- Eighteen suspects were extradited to the United States
- Thirty suspects have been indicted in the United States
- Nine people have been convicted on charges related to the assassination
- Joseph Felix Badio, accused of coordinating the assault and posing as a DEA agent, appeared in federal court in Miami
- Financing of the attack included money diverted from coronavirus relief funds
The Right View
Washington Examiner, Breitbart, and One America News reported the extradition as the next phase of a U.S. prosecution of the Moïse assassination. They quoted Quiñones saying investigators will pursue those who financed, facilitated, or supported the plot, and noted that 30 people have been indicted in the U.S. Coverage identified Badio as a central alleged coordinator who, according to accusations cited, posed as a DEA agent and helped mercenaries assault Moïse’s home; a wheelchair-using Badio appeared in Miami federal court. Outlets relayed Haiti’s statement that domestic proceedings remain stalled, Miami Herald reporting that families of Colombian detainees were not given advance notice and fear they cannot afford U.S. lawyers, claims by many of the Colombians that they were tricked into the operation, and that mercenaries were hired as security for Haitian-American pastor Christian Emmanuel Sanon, who faces trial in the U.S. Some reporting tied the U.S. case to alleged illicit financing, including money diverted from COVID-19 relief funds.
Our Take (balanced)
The story is substantive: it is anchored in a named U.S. Attorney announcement, a Haitian justice ministry statement, a Miami court appearance, an existing 30-person federal indictment, and nine prior U.S. convictions—not a single uncorroborated claim. Established facts are the physical transfer of 18 suspects, Badio’s appearance in federal court, Haiti’s stated reason for extradition, and that U.S. charges and convictions already exist. Still alleged, and for a jury, are each defendant’s guilt, Badio’s purported mastermind role and DEA impersonation, the Colombians’ claim they were dupes, and specific financial schemes including diversion of pandemic relief funds. No left-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch for: public naming of all 18 transferees, charging documents, Sanon’s trial, Haitian records of the extradition, and any Colombian government response.
3 sources
More stories
The week's bottom lines, in your inbox
One email a week: the five stories that mattered and what they actually mean. Free.