Haiti: kidnappers of missionaries demand $ 17 million in ransom

Published on : 19/10/2021 – 20:01

A million dollars per hostage. The kidnappers who kidnapped 17 North American citizens, including five children, on Saturday east of the Haitian capital demand a ransom of $ 17 million, security sources confirmed Tuesday (October 19) to AFP who requested anonymity. .

Members of the “400 mawozo” gang, which for months controlled the area where the group of missionaries and members of their families circulated on Saturday, demanded one million dollars per person held hostage, according to information gathered by AFP.

Liszt Quitel, Haitian Minister of Justice confirmed the involvement of this armed gang and told the Washington Post that the kidnappers usually demanded large sums, revised downwards during negotiations, specifying that his team was not taking part to these.

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On Sunday, the Christian Aid Ministries organization, of which the kidnapped missionaries are members, said the kidnapped group numbered “five men, seven women and five children” without specifying their ages.

Based in the state of Ohio, the religious institution said in its statement that these people were returning from a visit to an orphanage when they were abducted with members of their families.

In April, ten people including two French clerics were kidnapped for 20 days by this gang of “400 mawozo” in the same region, located between the capital Port-au-Prince and the border with the Dominican Republic.

Haiti is classified as a country in the red zone by the United States government which advises its nationals not to go there in particular because of the numerous kidnappings, specifying that “the victims regularly include American citizens.”

With AFP