Haitian residents lynch and set fire to suspected gang members

Haitian police said that at least 10 suspected gang members had been lynched and their bodies burned by residents of Port-au-Prince.

Haitian police said on Monday that at least 10 suspected gang members had been lynched and their bodies burned by residents of Port-au-Prince.

Haitian police spokesperson Gary Desrosiers said the group of armed bandits had been travelling in a vehicle in the capital and that police had intended to arrest them.

Separately, he said notorious crime boss Carlo Petithomme was dead, without giving any details. Petithomme went by the alias Ti Makak and led a gang of the same name.

The lynchings followed days of confrontations between gang members and security agents.

Photos by Reuters and video circulating on social media show several bodies piled in the road, with smoking tires and other objects on top of them. People surround them, shouting angrily. One person can be seen beating the lifeless bodies with a blunt object.

Gangs in Haiti have grown in strength since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, with residents caught in the middle as large portions of the capital and much of the countryside have become lawless.

The security situation has deteriorated further in recent months, with routine gun fights taking place between police officers and the gangs. Bloody turf battles have left hundreds dead and thousands displaced.