Ex-Haitian warlord sentenced

A New York state court sentenced a former Haitian paramilitary leader for conducting a mortgage fraud scheme.

Emmanuel “Toto” Constant led the right-wing Haitian militia FRAPH during the early 1990s. He had been accused of crimes like mass murder and in 2006 he was forced to pay $19 million in damages to a gang rape victim. Nevertheless, he faces a sentence of 12 to 37 years, and possibly up to 45 years for bilking lenders out of $1.7 million.

As we noted in July, Constant’s conviction was welcomed by Haitian exile groups, human rights organizations, and even by actor/activist Danny Glover. Constant’s sentencing was viewed favorably by some of these same people:

Center for Constitutional Rights lawyer Jennie Green said she was "absolutely thrilled" with Constant's sentence.

"The sentence sends an important message that powerful people such as Constant have to face penalties when they commit horrible crimes," she said…

Green said her group agreed with the judge that Constant should serve his sentence in the United States and not be deported to Haiti, where he could "evade justice" for the human rights crimes he's accused of committing.

Image- New York Times (“Emmanuel Constant in State Supreme Court in Brooklyn.”)
Sources- The Latin Americanist, Brooklyn Eagle, Guardian UK, IHT, Wikipedia