Wanted Notice Against Nenel Cassy: Nippes Organizations Denounce Persecution

The Collective of Organizations for the Development of Nippes (COD/Nippes) sent a letter to the Government Commissioner at the Port-au-Prince Court of First Instance. In it, it denounces what it calls political persecution targeting former Senator Nenel Cassy and warns against an authoritarian drift by the Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (DCPJ).

In this letter sent to Government Commissioner Me Frantz Montclair on April 10, 2025, of which Le Relief Inter obtained a copy, the Collective of Organizations for the Development of Nippes (COD/Nippes) expresses its concerns about what it considers an « instrumentalization of justice » against former Senator Cassy. The organization denounces a « persecution campaign » initiated by the DCPJ, despite the absence of legal grounds.

The Collective also commends Commissioner Montclair's decision to close the case involving the former elected official due to lack of evidence, while condemning the persistent attitude of the DCPJ, accused of issuing new wanted notices outside of any legal framework. « The DCPJ seems to want to establish itself as a higher authority than the Public Prosecutor's Office, » the collective laments, recalling that the police remain an auxiliary of justice, and not an autonomous entity.

The former senator, an influential political figure in the country, thus finds himself at the heart of an institutional power struggle, which COD/Nippes attributes to a personal dispute with the Director General of the Haitian National Police, Normil Rameau. For the signatories, this situation constitutes a threat to the rule of law and fuels public distrust towards judicial and police institutions.

The document also mentions an attempt to silence a committed voice close to the people, highlighting the danger of allowing a two-tiered justice system to flourish. The Collective even quotes Goethe to illustrate its indignation at the « abuse of power »: « It is by mistake that nature gave a brain to the policeman, for he is too stupid to have one. »

Finally, COD/Nippes calls on the Commissioner to « don his chief's mantle » to ensure respect for legality and protect those who are unjustly targeted. A copy of the letter was sent to the Ministry of Justice, the Director of Legal Affairs of the MJSP, the President of the Transitional Presidential Council, as well as the Citizen Protector.

According to the Collective, the situation is serious. « A day will come when the Nation will demand accountability from those who have failed in their duty, » the letter concludes.

Nenel Cassy is the subject of a wanted notice issued by the DCPJ dated February 18, 2025. He is part of a list of 16 wanted individuals, including former Kenscoff deputy Alfredo Antoine, who was already arrested last Friday, April 4. However, the former two-time elected official from Nippes made a quick visit to the Port-au-Prince public prosecutor's office in mid-March despite the notice issued against him.