Haitian gangs seize Port-au-Prince prison, freeing 4000 prisoners (photo)
Armed gangs stormed the main prison in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, freeing most of the 4,000 inmates.
He writes about it: BBC. The publication notes that the vast majority of the 4,000 men held there have escaped.
Among the detainees were gang members accused of involvement in the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021.
The publication notes that violence in Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, has worsened in recent years. Gangs seeking to oust Prime Minister Ariel Henri control 80% of Port-au-Prince.
The latest surge in violence began when Prime Minister Ariel Henri traveled to Kenya to negotiate the deployment of an international contingent to Haiti to fight banditry.
It was then that the leader of one of the gangs, Jimmy Cheriseur (nicknamed “Barbecue”), announced a joint gang attack to overthrow Henri.
A wave of shootings resulted in the deaths of four police officers and the injury of five others.
The Haitian police union appealed to the military to help fortify the prison, but late on Saturday night the prison was stormed.
The BBC adds that elections were supposed to be held in Haiti and Henri was supposed to resign on February 7, but this did not happen.
To recap: The widow of the former president of Haiti, Martin Moise, and former Prime Minister Claude Joseph were accused of involvement in the murder of Jovenel Moise.
Background:
- On July 7, a group of unidentified gunmen shot and killed Haitian President Jovenel Moise at his residence. There were 12 gunshot wounds on Moiz’s body. Moiz’s wife was also shot at, but she survived the attack. She assumed that her husband was attacked for political reasons, in particular because of the referendum on constitutional amendments. According to her, the mercenaries “want to kill the president’s dream.”
- Neurosurgeon Ariel Henry became the country’s leader in July, two weeks after Moise’s assassination.
- The suspect, Joseph Felix Badio, previously worked for the Haitian Ministry of Justice and joined the government’s anti-corruption unit in March 2013. However, he was later fired after “serious violations” of ethical rules. He is currently on the wanted list. In addition to Badio, the Haitian police also put John Joel Joseph, a former senator of the country’s parliament and an opponent of the Tet Calais party, to which Moise belonged, on the wanted list. The third suspect was Rodolphe Jaar.
- More than 40 suspects have been arrested in the case, including 18 former Colombian soldiers. Authorities are still looking for additional suspects.
