UPDATE — Feb. 9, 2023: In a Feb. 7, 2023 email to The Haitian Times, Dimitri Vorbe said he does not know James Solages and Solages has never worked for him nor his company.
“I have never met him and never had any conversation or contact with him,” Vorbe wrote. “I’m glad he’s under custody. This shall help us know the truth and who is behind all these lies.”
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James Solages, a Fort Lauderdale-based entrepreneur, is among the six suspects arrested so far in President Jovenel Moise’s assassination, according to Mathias Pierre, minister of elections and inner-party relationship, said. Within moments of the name making news, scores of Haitians said on social media that Solages used to work as a security guard for both Reginald Boulos and Dimitri Vorbe, two of Moise’s opponents.
Solages lived in Jacmel, a commune in the southeast department about 57 miles from Port-au-Prince, before moving to Fort Lauderdale.
Sergot Joassaint, a Jacmel resident, said he has come across Solages before in Monchil 1, located at the entrance of Jacmel. He recognized Solages from the picture.
Joassaint said he never expected Solages’s name to be on the list of Moise’s suspected murderers.
“I would’ve never expected that but nowadays with what’s happening in Haiti, you can’t trust people,” said Sergot, 50.
A different Jacmel resident said Solages was “very close” to Vorbe. “He was his right-hand man,” said the resident. The Haitian Times is not naming the source for fear of reprisal.
A message sent to Vorbe through his Facebook account had not been returned as of this filing. Vorbe has not posted on his Twitter account since July 6.
On social media, multiple people said Solages has worked as a security guard in Vorbe’s and Boulos’ businesses.
Solages describes himself as the CEO of Fwa Sa a Jacmel Avan charitable organization. He is a former chief commander of body-guards for The Canadian Embassy in Haiti, according to his About Me page on Fwa Sa site.
When reached for comment, Boulos’s public relations team asked where The Haitian Times had heard the information. They later wrote in an email that “Mr. Solages has never worked for Mr. Boulos, according to their records.”
The Miami Herald also reported that a second man from the Miami area, Joseph Vincent, was arrested in connection with the assassination. Vincent is of Haitian descent and reportedly about 56 years old.
Information from The Washington Post was used in this report. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
This is a very good article. It’s got a more information than the other papers do and it’s not a cut and paste job (over used in msm). It’s a nice change from the nonsense I normally have to tolerate and I appreciate that. Thanks.
change from the regular reports
Agreed.
Agreed.