Jovenel Moïse's net worth: Haiti president once faced money-laundering suspicions

Jovenel Moïse was killed on July 7 at his private residence, the country’s interim prime minister confirmed

UPDATED JUL 7, 2021

Jovenel Moïse, President of Haiti, delivering a speech at the United Nations during the United Nations General Assembly on September 27, 2018 (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Haitian President Jovenel Moïse has been killed at his private residence on July 7, by a group of armed men. The overnight attack also seriously injured his wife, Martine Moïse, who was shifted to a hospital for treatment and died later. The country’s interim prime minister Claude Joseph branded the attack as a “hateful, inhumane and barbaric act.”

In a statement quoted in media outlets, Joseph said: “Around one o’clock in the morning, during the night of Tuesday 6th to Wednesday 7th of July 2021, a group of unidentified individuals, including some speaking Spanish, attacked the private residence of the president and fatally injured the head of state.” He also assured the country of more than 11 million people that the nation’s “security situation is under the control of the National Police of Haiti and the Armed Forces of Haiti. Democracy and the republic will win.”

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The tragedy came as Haiti struggled with intense economic, political, and social issues. The country’s captal Port-au-Prince has also seen gang violence escalating heavily in the recent past.

President of Haiti Jovenel Moïse arrives for President Guillermo Lasso inauguration speech at Asamblea Nacional on May 24, 2021 in Quito, Ecuador (Photo by Franklin Jacome/Getty Images)

Moïse ruled the country by decree for more than two years after the country failed to hold legislative elections in 2019. But opposition leaders alleged that he was holding the office by unfair means and in recent months demanded his resignation too. General elections were scheduled to take place later this year in Haiti — the world’s first black republic after its revolution against French rule.

Jovenel Moïse's net worth

As per reports, besides being a politician, Moïse was also an entrepreneur. Not much has been revealed about his wealth, but some reports have said that his net worth is $4 million. He was born on June 26, 1968, in Trou du Nord, Nord-Est, Haiti, but later his family shifted to Port-au-Prince. However, after tying the knot with his wife in 1996, Moise moved to Port-de-Paix to work towards the development of rural areas. He founded JOMAR Auto Parts. In 2012, he also launched AGRITRANS SA and helped build Haiti's first agricultural free trade zone.

President of the Republic of Haiti H.E. Jovenel Moïse speaks onstage during the 2018 Concordia Annual Summit - Day 2 at Grand Hyatt New York on September 25, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit)

But Moïse had also once faced money-laundering suspicions just before taking office in 2017. At the time, it was said that a Haitian judge was probing a report by the government’s financial crimes unit that accused Moïse of laundering millions of dollars through at least one local bank. The report also alleged that he was given special treatment for receiving thousands of dollars in business loans.

The report by the Central Financial Intelligence Unit (Unité Centrale de Renseignements Financiers - UCREF) stated: “The observed deposits to this account are made in cash, and are substantial. We have observed several daily deposits concerning very significant amounts, which exceed the threshold requiring a 'declaration of the origins of funds.' We cannot justify the origins of these deposits as we do not yet possess supporting documents.”

But Moïse had dismissed the allegations and claimed, “I am a hard-working entrepreneur. I started from scratch but I have always acted with honesty and integrity. It is a political maneuver. It is a form of blackmail as we are about to form the government.”