LatinNews Daily - 30 October 2023

Haiti: On 25 October the US Department of Justice (DoJ) announced that Vitel’homme Innocent, a Haitian national and leader of the Kraze Barye gang, had been charged for his alleged role in the October 2022 armed hostage taking, in Haiti, of two US citizens, Jean Franklin and Marie Odette Franklin, one of whom (Marie Odette) was killed during the event. A DoJ statement notes that Innocent remains at large, and is believed to reside in Tabarre, a commune in Port-au-Prince (Ouest department). It adds that he and the Kraze Barye gang operate in the Ouest department of Haiti. The gang actively participates in kidnappings for ransom, extortion, and car thefts. The DoJ statement notes that Innocent faces additional charges in the US related to his role in the kidnapping of 16 US citizens in 2021, for which he was indicted. In 2022, the US State Department announced a reward offer of up to US$1m for information leading to his arrest and/or conviction. A report published last month by a group of United Nations (UN) experts highlights that Kraze Barye has around 600 members and “has become one of the most powerful gangs in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, with an increasing number of fighters and semi-automatic weapons”. Earlier this month the UN Security Council (UNSC) extended for another year a sanctions regime approved in October 2022, targeting gangs as part of efforts to address the spiralling security crisis afflicting Haiti.

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