Investigators in Haiti accuse three members of transitional presidential council of corruption

An anti-corruption agency in Haiti on Wednesday accused three members of the country's transitional presidential council of bribery in a scathing report that threatens to destabilize the country’s fragile political stability.

Smith Augustin, Emmanuel Vertilaire and Louis Gérald Gilles are accused of demanding more than $750,000 from the director of the government-owned National Bank of Credit to secure his job, the Unit for Combating Corruption said in its report.

“The message is clear. No one is above the laws of our republic!” said Hans Joseph, the unit's director, as he detailed the corruption allegations during a news conference where he unveiled the report.

Behind him stood at least half a dozen investigators wearing caps and face masks, their identities concealed.

The report is a significant blow to the nine-member council and is expected to further erode people's trust in it. The council was appointed earlier this year after targeted gang violence forced the country's former prime minister to resign, leaving Haiti without a leader. The council works alongside new Prime Minister Garry Conille and is tasked with helping run the country.

It wasn't immediately clear if the council would take any action against the three members, who did not return messages for comment.

Impunity remains widespread in Haiti even as the Unit for Combating Corruption continues cracking down on government officials.

The agency accused Gilles of organizing a meeting on May 25 among the council members, the former bank director, Raoul Pascal Pierre-Louis, and Haitian consul Lonick Léandre at the Royal Oasis Hotel in the capital of Port-au-Prince, where the demand for more than $750,000 was made.

According to the report, Pierre-Louis told investigators that Gilles and Léandre took his phone and those of others present before the meeting began. “At first, I thought it was a joke,” he was quoted as saying.

After the meeting, Pierre-Louis mentioned the demand to several officials, including Prime Minister Garry Conille and a judge.

Pierre-Louis then scheduled a second meeting at his home “to continue the discussions,” with only Augustin and Gilles attending. Unable to come with the more than $750,000, Pierre-Louis proposed instead to arrange loans or lines of credit, according to the report. Pictures of the dinner were later shared with investigators.

Authorities said that four lines of credit were soon arranged, three of them up to $20,000 each for the council members accused, and a fourth up to $13,500 for Léandre.

The three council members and the bank manager all face criminal charges of bribery and corruption, the anti-corruption unit said. Léandre faces charges of instigating bribe payments. None of them could be reached for comment.

A judge is now expected to review the report’s findings and issue any arrest warrants if needed.

Augustin previously served as Haitian ambassador to the Dominican Republic, Gilles is an ex-senator and Vertilaire is a former investigative judge.

The report noted that all five denied the accusations, adding that Vertilaire told investigators, “It would be an absurdity on my part to demand money from someone I don’t even know, from someone I saw for the first time.”

The agency also called on the U.S. government to extradite Pierre-Louis.