Up until Wednesday, December 11, at least sixty people kidnapped by gangs awaited their fate, according to Marie Yolène Gilles
Gang leader Micanor Altès, alias “Wa Micanor”, continues his abuses against the civilian population in Wharf Jérémie, a district of the commune of Cité Soleil, AyiboPost has learned from three sources familiar with the gang leader’s crimes.
Esaïe Beauchard, former mayor of the district between 2014 and 2016, revealed to AyiboPost that around 50 more people were massacred between the afternoon of Tuesday, December 12 and Wednesday, December 13, 2024.
Around 20 small houses containing children and pregnant women were burned by the gang leader’s henchmen, reports former interim agent Beauchard.
These figures add to the toll of the massacres carried out last weekend during which more than 200 people were killed, according to figures presented by Fondasyon Je Klere (FJKL).
These attacks continue in retaliation against individuals accused of having disclosed information to the press regarding the massacre perpetrated between December 6 and 8, according to information collected by AyiboPost.
A 17-year-old teenager, soldier of the “Micanor” gang leader, attested to having received orders to riddle with bullets and set fire to his mother’s house, an elderly woman, according to Beauchard.
The latter refused and fled.
“His two parents, his one-year-old son, his two little brothers as well as his little sister aged 14 and pregnant, were all burned alive at home by the other members of the gang,” says Beauchard, citing the testimony of the teenager which he received on Tuesday at 10 p.m. by telephone.
A 17-year-old teenager, soldier of the gang leader “Wa Micanor” attested to having received the order to riddle with bullets and set fire to his mother’s house, an elderly woman.
The minor was recruited by gang leader Micanor. By participating in armed activities, he helped support his family.
According to former mayor Beauchard who still lives in the town, the toll of people killed up until Wednesday, December 11 stands at nearly 300.
It all started on the night of December 6 to 7, 2024 around 11 o’clock in the evening.
Gang leader Micanor, member of the criminal coalition curiously dubbed “Viv ansanm” (Live together) led by former police officer Jimmy Cherizier alias ‘Barbecue’, ordered the massacre of dozens of elderly people.
Friday evening, Marckenson Cangé, eldest son of Marcel Cangé, received a phone call informing him that three individuals had come to pick up his father who lived in Wharf Jérémie.
Marcel Cangé, 76 years old, lived in the area for 29 years. A father of 4, he was an employee of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MAST).
On Saturday, December 7, at 2 in the morning, another call from an unknown person informed Marckenson Cangé that his father had been killed, then incinerated.
“My father was a respectable person and a point of reference in the area. I lost a friend, a council,” regrets the attorney, with a touch of sadness in his voice.
At present, Cangé claims to have taken cover against threats from gangs who blame him for spreading news of the massacre in the media.
My father was a respectable person and a point of reference in the area. I lost a friend, a council
On Saturday evening, the bandits gathered the people in a space near a public square nicknamed “Martelly” after the former president now under sanction from the United States for drug trafficking.
According to a witness familiar with the events, they took the people to the seaside and started the executions at 11:28.
At 1 a.m. Sunday morning, they charred these corpses.
According to a press release from the Fondasyon Je Klere (FJKL), the gang leader wanted to avenge his deceased child, whom he believes was the victim of witchcraft.
He therefore ordered his soldiers to forcibly kidnap elderly people, then kill them and burn their bodies.
According to the National Human Rights Defense Network (RNDDH), the murdered people were aged 60 and over.
“We have lived for years in a situation of impunity. And this impunity gives rise to all kinds of criminal actions” explains Marie Yolène Gilles, who denounces a trivialization of the right to life in the country.
For the human rights activist within Fondasyon Je klere, what is happening illustrates the weakness of the judiciary in arresting and punishing the guilty.
We have been living in a situation of impunity for years. And this impunity gives rise to all kinds of criminal actions
Former mayor Beauchard believes that the gang leader is engaging in these abuses to honor his commitments to mystical entities.
According to the FJKL, the gang leader has previously organized similar massacres against voodoo practitioners, notably in 2008 and 2012.
The massacre on the night of December 6 to 7, 2024 takes place in a context marked by the presence, for five months, of a multinational force mandated to support the Haitian National Police in the fight against gangs.
In a press release published on December 9, the government promised to take action with “great speed” against the perpetrators of these crimes.
At this time, the gang is taking steps to increase its control in the area by banning residents from using cell phones.
“Even the soldiers are controlled in that sense,” indicates former interim agent Beauchard.
This Wednesday, Micanor, the gang leader, invited all members of the Wharf Jérémie population to a meeting which took place around 2 p.m., according to information obtained by AyiboPost.
An activist from the Batay Ouvriye organization who has lived in the area for more than 20 years and contacted by AyiboPost, believes that the objective of this meeting was to pressure the population not to divulge information concerning the facts and to prevent them from leaving the area.
The activist knows at least 15 people who were killed by the gang. Unable to flee, his family is trapped at Wharf Jérémie.
Micanor also ordered that a demonstration be orchestrated in his favor this Wednesday, December 12.
At this time, the gang is taking steps to increase its control in the area by banning residents from using cell phones.
During the meeting, gang members were ordered to check every house for anyone not present at the gathering, under penalty of physical harm or execution, according to the Batay Ouvriye activist.
A doctor working in a hospital in the area shared with AyiboPost his memories of this tragedy which he describes as a real “disaster”.
Since the start of the massacre, operations at the hospital have been slow.
Before the events unfolded, the medical center sometimes received up to 150 patients per day.
But until Sunday, December 8, only 3 people with leg injuries came.
When they arrived at the hospital, they claimed to have been hit by stray bullets while the bandits were carrying out their massacre.
The doctor says he is outraged and feels helpless in the face of this event.
“I am in the area to provide medical care to the population. Unfortunately, I could do nothing in the face of this cruelty,” he laments.
Before these latest massacres orchestrated by gang leader Micanor, warning signs suggested that grave events could occur in Cité Soleil.
Because, according to testimonies obtained by AyiboPost, since October, homosexuals have been chased out of the area by gangs.
Homosexuals and people accused of being werewolves are in the sights of the criminal organization.
Up until Wednesday, December 11, at least 60 people kidnapped by gangs awaited their fate, according to Marie Yolène Gilles.
By Rolph Louis-Jeune, Fenel Pélissier & Wethzer Piercin
Cover image | Collage of Wharf Jeremy and gang leader Micanor. ©AyiboPost
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