Martelly Returns to Haiti Amid Judicial Summons in Moïse Assassination Case
The former president arrived in Pétion-Ville to a supporter welcome as he is expected to answer questions before a judge overseeing the reopened probe.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — Former Haitian President Michel Martelly returned to Haiti on July 15, roughly a month after delaying a judicial summons in the investigation into the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, according to The Haitian Times, hoy.com.do and AP. Martelly, who has lived in the United States for several years, was greeted by supporters in Pétion-Ville accompanied by a rara band and a police escort, a reception critics said contrasted with the allegations surrounding him. He is expected to appear before Judge Jean Denis Cyprien, who oversees the reopened investigation into Moïse's July 7, 2021 assassination. No charges have been publicly announced against Martelly in the case, and authorities have not indicated he is a suspect. The probe has passed through five investigative judges without a trial; its only indictment, implicating about 50 people, was overturned by the Port-au-Prince Court of Appeal. Investigators previously questioned figures including national police director general André Jonas Vladimir Paraison. Martelly, leader of the PHTK party and known as 'Sweet Micky,' faces separate corruption allegations and sanctions from Canada (2022), the United States (2024) and the European Union (December 2025), which cited drug trafficking and gang financing. He has not publicly explained his return.