Haitian Gang Wants $17M Ransom for Kidnapped Missionaries

The Haitian gang that kidnapped a group of 17 American and Canadian missionaries in Haiti, has asked for $1 million each for their release.

Sixteen American citizens and one Canadian were kidnapped by the powerful “400 Mawozo” gang on Saturday after visiting an orphanage in Croix-des-Bouquets, a northeast suburb of the capital Port-au-Prince.

Haitian Justice Minister Liszt Quitel told CNN the kidnappers have demanded a total of $17 million for the group’s release and that they were being held in a location outside the suburb.

The missionaries are affiliated with the Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries, which says the abducted group is made up of five men, seven women, and five children.

Quitel said the kidnappers first called Christian Aid Ministries’ staff in Haiti at 4:53 p.m. on Saturday, stating their ransom demands at the time of the call. Several calls between the kidnappers and the missionary group have taken place since then, he said.