Prosecutor asks judge to charge prime minster in slaying

Haiti’s chief prosecutor asked a judge Tuesday to charge Prime Minister Ariel Henry in the slaying of the president and to bar him from leaving the country, a move that could further destabilize a country roiled by turmoil following the assassination and a recent major earthquake.

The order filed by Port-au-Prince prosecutor Bed-Ford Claude came on the same day that he requested that Henry meet with him and explain why a key suspect in the assassination of President Jovenel Mose called him twice just hours after the killing.

“There are enough compromising elements … to prosecute Henry and ask for his outright indictment,” Claude wrote.

A spokesman for Henry could not immediately be reached for comment.

Claude said the calls were made at 4:03 a.m. and 4:20 a.m. on July 7, adding that evidence shows the suspect, Joseph Badio, was in the vicinity of Mose’s home at that time. Badio once worked for Haiti’s Ministry of Justice and at the government’s anti-corruption unit until he was fired in May amid accusations of violating unspecified ethical rules.