A U.S. federal judge has approved a negotiated agreement that will allow prominent Haitian businessman Dimitri Albert Edouard Vorbe to be transferred to the Dominican Republic instead of being deported to Haiti, potentially ending nearly eight months of immigration detention in South Florida.
U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles in the Southern District of Florida approved the agreement on May 12, 2026. The court order explicitly prohibits U.S. authorities from deporting Vorbe to Haiti under any circumstances and directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to facilitate his removal to the Dominican Republic within seven days.
Vorbe has been detained at the Krome North Service Processing Center in Miami since his arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on September 23, 2025. As part of the agreement, he is expected to withdraw his pending lawsuit challenging his detention conditions approximately 48 hours after arriving in the Dominican Republic.
U.S. authorities had accused Vorbe’s presence in the United States of posing “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences,” citing alleged links to armed groups contributing to instability in Haiti. No criminal charges were filed against him in U.S. courts; the case was handled through immigration proceedings.
Despite the U.S. court order, the situation remains unresolved. Dominican Republic authorities have publicly reaffirmed that Vorbe has been subject to an entry ban since October 13, 2025, and stated unequivocally that he will not be allowed to enter Dominican territory.
The Dominican General Directorate of Migrati
on (DGM) and the Ministry of Interior and Police have both issued statements confirm
ing the ban, raising serious questions about whether the U.S.-approved transfer can actually be carried out.
