Foreign media: 17 Americans were kidnapped, and the gang behind the scenes made a living by collecting ransoms

A group of 17 American missionaries and their relatives were kidnapped on the 16th local time in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. Argentina's Buenos Aires Economic News Network published an article on October 24 revealing the "400 Rookie", the organization behind the kidnapping of the 17 American missionaries. The full text is excerpted below:

The "400 Rookie" group controls the Croix-de-Bouquet region on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince. Other gangs mainly rely on drug trafficking or collecting "taxes", but the "rookie" business is kidnapping to collect ransom. They hijacked a bus full of passengers and held them hostage until relatives paid for their release. Or to put it more simply, some "minions" saw someone passing by on the street and kidnapped them.

The leader of the gang was Wilson Joseph, who was better known by the Creole nickname "Ramo Sancho," which roughly means: "Death doesn't know when it's coming." Joseph loves to make videos in which he describes in detail some of the crimes committed by the gang and uploads them to social networks with thousands of followers.

Joseph's latest video was uploaded on the 20th. He threatens to kill the hostages in the video. "I swear with thunder that if I don't get what I want, I'd rather kill these Americans."

Joseph in the video wears a thick chain and a large gold cross. He also accused Haitian police chief Leon Charles of killing two of his men in the video.

In Creole, the gang's name means "400 rookies" or "400 unprofessionals." But the name is at odds with the nature of the organization, which is feared by the local population in order to maintain control over Haitian neighborhoods, shops and power figures. In addition to mass abductions, they are characterized by systematic attacks on clergy and Christian churches.

In April, 400 Rookie kidnapped five priests and two nuns, several of whom were French citizens, and held them in harsh conditions for up to three weeks. Catholic universities and schools in Haiti closed their doors in protest. The gang demanded a ransom of $1 million before they were released. Eventually all the kidnappers were released. Negotiations in the case took place through the gang's second-in-command, Jolly Gemino, who is now in prison.

In July, Haiti's president, Jophneer Moiz, was assassinated at home, leaving a political vacuum, deepening the country's chaos. Elections scheduled for this year could be postponed until 2022. (Compilation/Lu Wang)

Source: Reference News Network