Haiti's former dictator Duvalier arrested after returning from exile

[News_Editor]

Haiti's former dictator Duvalier arrested after returning from exile

2011-01-19 09:56:33 GMT+7 (ICT)

PORT-AU-PRINCE (BNO NEWS) -- Former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier was escorted from his hotel in Port-au-Prince by police on Tuesday, the local newspaper Le Nouvelliste reported.

A smiling Duvalier, who surprisingly returned to Haiti after a 25-year exile, left the Karibe Hotel under police escort and, according to a judicial source, was going to be taken to court, the newspaper reported.

Around 10:30 a.m., the country's top prosecutor and a judge arrived at the hotel, while police officers secured the premises, the Miami Herald reported. Supporters gathered at the site were screaming as Duvalier exited the high-end hotel around noon, and a SWAT team cleared the way.

It was reported that United Nations officers were also at the scene.

Duvalier, who led a brutal regime from 1971 to 1986, has been accused of corruption and robbery during his regime

Haiti, one of the poorest countries in America, is still in the process of recovery after last year's earthquake, which killed over 316,000 people, injured more than 300,000 others and displaced 2.3 million people.

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