30429: (news) Chamberlain: Haitian Strongman (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

   By TOM HAYS

   NEW YORK, May 21 (AP) -- A former paramilitary leader wanted in Haiti on
murder and torture charges insisted Monday that he has become a scapegoat
for atrocities in the Caribbean nation and would be killed if he were
forced to return.
   "If I ever touch Haiti, I will be executed at the airport," Emmanuel
"Toto" Constant said in a rambling, emotional plea to a judge overseeing
his mortgage fraud case in state Supreme Court.
   The dire warning was a switch from last week, when Constant, 50, told
the judge he did not fear going back because he had done nothing wrong.
   On Monday, Constant repeated claims that he had worked with the CIA
while head of a Haitian paramilitary group in the 1990s. He also said he
was "promoting reconciliation" at the time but has become a target of
political persecution.
   Last week, prosecutors urged Justice Abraham Gerges to sentence Constant
to time served, about 10 months of a proposed sentence of one to three
years, to speed his deportation to Haiti to face charges there.
   Gerges postponed the sentencing after the Center for Constitutional
Rights claimed Haiti's justice system was too unstable to ensure Constant's
proper prosecution. The civil rights group also argued the proposed
sentence in the fraud case was too lenient, given Constant's background.
   The judge has suggested he might reject the plea deal, forcing Constant
to withdraw a guilty plea and go to trial on charges he defrauded lenders
out of more than $1.7 million. If convicted at trial, Constant would face
five to 15 years in prison.
   Constant's attorney, Marie Pereira, argued that the deal was reached
"with full knowledge of these frivolous allegations" and should be honored.
   The judge said he would rule Tuesday.
   Constant, the 6-foot-4 son of a military officer, emerged as the feared
leader of the Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti, or FRAPH,
after President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's presidency was toppled in 1991.
   Human rights groups allege that between 1991 and 1994, FRAPH terrorized
and slaughtered slum-dwellers loyal to Aristide. When Aristide returned to
power in 1994, Constant fled to the United States.
   Despite a 1995 deportation order, Constant was allowed to remain because
of instability in Haiti. He kept a low profile, living with relatives in
New York until being jailed last year in the fraud case.