Official Arrested For Disrupting Elections

A former president of the Chamber of Deputies was arrested Saturday on charges he tried to disrupt last month’s elections, including paying arsonists to burn ballots.

Police arrested Duly Brutus, a member of a center-right party, at his home Saturday morning, Socialist Party leader Serge Gilles said.

Socialist leaders responded to the arrest by accusing the Electoral Council, which many feel was stacked with supporters of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, of conspiring to destroy parties opposed to his rule. The council had requested that authorities take action against those who incited violence around the June 25 elections.