Colombia Denies Meeting Between Duque and Mercenary Recruiter

The Colombian government denied that President Ivan Duque had met with Antonio Intriago, a Venezuelan citizen who is the representative of the CTU Security company that recruited the Colombian ex-military men who took part in the assassination of Haiti's President Jovenel Moise.

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"The then presidential candidate Ivan Duque did not hold any meeting nor has any link with Antonio Intriago," the Colombian Presidency said regarding a meeting that would have taken place in Miami on Feb. 10, 2018.

On Monday, however, outlet La Nueva Prensa published that the Colombian Presidency confirmed otherwise. Regarding this publication, the Colombian government said that Duque was in a public campaign event in Miami, which was attended by over 1,200 people.

"In the approach typical of a public campaign event, the then candidate agreed to greet and take pictures with some attendees," the Colombian Presidency said without mentioning whether Intriago was one attendee at that event.

This Venezuelan citizen is suspected of having recruited the 21 Colombians who took part in the assault on Moise's residence in Port-au-Prince on July 7. His company, which sells security equipment and offers protection services, purchased 19 airline tickets with which the Colombian ex-military personnel traveled to the Dominican Republic and then crossed into Haiti.

Colombia's Police Director Jorge Vargas confirmed that there were "communication links" between CTU Security, retired Captain German Rivera, who was detained by the Haitian Police, and Duberney Capador, one of the three Colombian mercenaries killed in shootouts with the Haitian Police after the operation against Moise.

So far, Haitian police have arrested 18 Colombians and two Haitian-Americans. Five Colombians remain on the run.