An organization defending human rights in Haiti has requested the opening of a probe against the judge responsible for investigating the murder of Jovenel Möise

Port-au-Prince, January 19 (RHC)-- An organization defending human rights in Haiti has requested the opening of a probe against the judge responsible for investigating the murder of Jovenel Möise.

The National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (Rnddh) also denounced the payment of alleged bribes to magistrate Gary Orélien.   The Haitian organization claims that the judge received around 20 thousand dollars for the "lifting of the prohibition of departure dictated against a personality", who is supposed to have links with a suspected assassin.

The Rnddh claims that, of the four policemen recently released by magistrate Gary Orélien, at least one of them paid him 25,000 US dollars.  Rnddh sent the request against the judge to the Central Directorate of the Judicial Police to open an investigation and clarify the allegations against the magistrate.

The report of the human rights defender came after the refusal of the dean of the Court of First Instance, Bernard Saint-Vil, to extend the deadline for the investigation of the assassination requested by Orélien.  Saint-Vil gave no explanation for the refusal to extend the time of the investigation into the July 7 assassination.

Judge Gary Orélien took over the file at the end of August after the resignation of his predecessor, and local reports indicate that he interviewed some thirty people, among them the widow Martine Moïse, former parliamentarians, policemen and other figures of interest related to the case, without yet formulating charges against the 40 or so detainees for the assassination.