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Aristide Aide Accused of Killings Plot

Posted on: Tuesday, 6 April 2004, 06:00 CDT

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's interior minister was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of orchestrating the killings of several people viewed as Aristide opponents, officials said.

The arrest of Jocelerme Privert - the highest ranking official to be detained since Aristide's departure on Feb. 29 - comes amid complaints from former government leaders and members of Aristide's political party that Haiti's interim leaders are targeting them.

Privert was accused in the mid-February killings of several suspected Aristide opponents in St. Marc, a northern port city where violence flared in the buildup to an armed rebellion that pushed Aristide from power, the government said.

Although Privert allegedly conspired to kill several people in the town, officials didn't say how many people were killed, nor did they provide names of those allegedly slain.

"The procedure is going to follow its normal course," interim Justice Minister Bernard Gousse told The Associated Press.

Privert was being held at the national penitentiary until an investigation is completed. Law requires that he hear the charges against him within 48 hours.

It was unclear whether he had an attorney.

When asked to visit Privert at the penitentiary on Tuesday, Haitian officials told reporters he was under the protection of the U.S. Embassy, which had no immediate comment.

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