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CBS News
16-07-2025
- CBS News
Shootout on high seas leads to seizure of 2,300 pounds of cocaine, 3 suspects killed off coast of Haiti
Three suspected drug traffickers were killed in an exchange of fire as police in Haiti confiscated more than 2,300 pounds of cocaine aboard a boat, officials said Tuesday, in a rare drug seizure in the troubled Caribbean country. The police raid took place off the coast of northern Haiti near Tortue Island where traffickers are suspected of transferring drugs, Port-de-Paix prosecutor Jeir Pierre told Radio Caraïbes on Tuesday. Pierre said police have long postponed any action at that location because of a lack of resources, but noted that a regional police director recently requested a boat to use around Tortue Island. "We have had this area in our sights for a long time," Pierre said. Police approached a suspected drug trafficking boat on Sunday and ordered the suspects aboard to raise their hands, but they did not comply and instead opened fire at the officers, Pierre said. Officers returned fire, with two suspected drug traffickers jumping into the ocean and later dying. A third suspected drug trafficker died on shore while a fourth one, from the Bahamas, was injured and later arrested, Pierre said. Police said on social media that one of suspects who died was a man from Jamaica. Police also released images on social media of the seized cocaine. The photos showed officers next to stacks of drugs, with some of the packages labeled "Rolex" on the front. Pierre said no Haitian police officers were injured. The U.S. government has previously noted that powerful people in Haiti are involved in the country's drug trade. In August 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned former Haitian President Michel Martelly, accusing him of abusing his influence to facilitate the trafficking of drugs, including cocaine, destined for the U.S. "Many of Haiti's political and business elites have long been involved in drug trafficking and have been linked to the gangs responsible for the violence that has destabilized Haiti," the Treasury Department said. Haiti has long served as a transit hub for the movement of cocaine and other illicit drugs to the U.S. and Dominican Republic, according to a report by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. The U.N. office has also noted that some of Haiti's gangs have bigger arsenals than the police as they have become "stronger, richer and more autonomous."
Winnipeg Free Press
15-07-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Police in Haiti seize a ton of cocaine in a boat raid that leaves 3 suspects dead
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Three suspected drug traffickers were killed in an exchange of fire as police in Haiti confiscated more than 2,300 pounds (1,000 kilograms) of cocaine aboard a boat, officials said Tuesday, in a rare drug seizure in the troubled Caribbean country. The police raid took place off the coast of northern Haiti near Tortue Island where traffickers are suspected of transferring drugs, Port-de-Paix prosecutor Jeir Pierre told Radio Caraïbes on Tuesday. Pierre said police have long postponed any action at that location because of a lack of resources, but noted that a regional police director recently requested a boat to use around Tortue Island. 'We have had this area in our sights for a long time,' Pierre said. Police approached a suspected drug trafficking boat on Sunday and ordered the suspects aboard to raise their hands, but they did not comply and instead opened fire at the officers, Pierre said. Officers returned fire, with two suspected drug traffickers jumping into the ocean and later dying. A third suspected drug trafficker died on shore while a fourth one, from the Bahamas, was injured and later arrested, Pierre said. Police said on X that one of suspects who died was a man from Jamaica. Pierre said no Haitian police officers were injured. The U.S. government has previously noted that powerful people in Haiti are involved in the country's drug trade. In August 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned former Haitian President Michel Martelly, accusing him of abusing his influence to facilitate the trafficking of drugs, including cocaine, destined for the U.S. 'Many of Haiti's political and business elites have long been involved in drug trafficking and have been linked to the gangs responsible for the violence that has destabilized Haiti,' the Treasury Department said.
Arab News
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Gangs in Haiti kill 4 soldiers and 4 civilians in bid to seize full control of the capital
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti: Gangs trying to seize full control of Haiti have killed at least four soldiers and four armed civilians who worked with law enforcement to protect their communities, an official said Thursday. Lionel Lazarre, spokesman for Haiti's National Police, told Radio Caraïbes that two soldiers and four civilians were killed in Kenscoff, a once peaceful community on the outskirts of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Two other soldiers and an undetermined number of civilians were killed in the community of Pacot inside the capital, he said. On Wednesday night, the government said that at least four police officers and armed civilians from the community of Canapé-Vert, one of the few neighborhoods not controlled by gangs, were killed in the attacks. In videos posted on social media, gunmen are seen mutilating several bodies and picking up severed heads as trophies, saying, 'We got the dogs.' Haiti's transitional presidential council and the prime minister's office condemned the attacks in separate statements and said that multiple people were injured. 'The government reaffirms that the fight against insecurity remains its top priority,' the office said. Gangs that control at least 85 percent of Port-au-Prince have launched recent attacks on previously peaceful areas that police and armed residents are trying to protect. More than 260 people were killed in attacks on Kenscoff and Carrefour earlier this year, according to the UN political mission in Haiti. Haitian police are working alongside a UN-backed mission led by Kenyan police to repel gangs, although they have struggled in their efforts. The mission is underfunded and only has some 1,000 personnel out of the 2,500 envisioned. More than 5,600 people were killed in Haiti last year, with gang violence leaving more than one million people homeless, according to the UN
24-04-2025
- Politics
Gangs in Haiti kill 4 soldiers, 4 civilians in bid to seize full control of capital
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Gangs trying to seize full control of Haiti have killed at least four soldiers and four armed civilians who worked with law enforcement to protect their communities, an official said Thursday. Lionel Lazarre, spokesman for Haiti's National Police, told Radio Caraïbes that two soldiers and four civilians were killed in Kenscoff, a once peaceful community on the outskirts of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Two other soldiers and an undetermined number of civilians were killed in the community of Pacot inside the capital, he said. On Wednesday night, the government said that at least four police officers and armed civilians from the community of Canapé-Vert, one of the few neighborhoods not controlled by gangs, were killed in the attacks. In videos posted on social media, gunmen are seen mutilating several bodies and picking up severed heads as trophies, saying, 'We got the dogs.' Haiti's transitional presidential council and the prime minister's office condemned the attacks in separate statements and said that multiple people were injured. 'The government reaffirms that the fight against insecurity remains its top priority,' the office said. Gangs that control at least 85% of Port-au-Prince have launched recent attacks on previously peaceful areas that police and armed residents are trying to protect. More than 260 people were killed in attacks on Kenscoff and Carrefour earlier this year, according to the U.N. political mission in Haiti. Haitian police are working alongside a U.N.-backed mission led by Kenyan police to repel gangs, although they have struggled in their efforts. The mission is underfunded and only has some 1,000 personnel out of the 2,500 envisioned. More than 5,600 people were killed in Haiti last year, with gang violence leaving more than one million people homeless, according to the U.N.
The Independent
24-04-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Gangs in Haiti kill 4 soldiers and 4 civilians in bid to seize full control of the capital
Gangs trying to seize full control of Haiti have killed at least four soldiers and four armed civilians who worked with law enforcement to protect their communities, an official said Thursday. Lionel Lazarre, spokesman for Haiti's National Police, told Radio Caraïbes that two soldiers and four civilians were killed in Kenscoff, a once peaceful community on the outskirts of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Two other soldiers and an undetermined number of civilians were killed in the community of Pacot inside the capital, he said. On Wednesday night, the government said that at least four police officers and armed civilians from the community of Canapé-Vert, one of the few neighborhoods not controlled by gangs, were killed in the attacks. In videos posted on social media, gunmen are seen mutilating several bodies and picking up severed heads as trophies, saying, 'We got the dogs.' Haiti's transitional presidential council and the prime minister's office condemned the attacks in separate statements and said that multiple people were injured. 'The government reaffirms that the fight against insecurity remains its top priority,' the office said. Gangs that control at least 85% of Port-au-Prince have launched recent attacks on previously peaceful areas that police and armed residents are trying to protect. More than 260 people were killed in attacks on Kenscoff and Carrefour earlier this year, according to the U.N. political mission in Haiti. Haitian police are working alongside a U.N.-backed mission led by Kenyan police to repel gangs, although they have struggled in their efforts. The mission is underfunded and only has some 1,000 personnel out of the 2,500 envisioned. More than 5,600 people were killed in Haiti last year, with gang violence leaving more than one million people homeless, according to the U.N.
