The United States announced on Wednesday a reward of up to three million dollars and the "possibility of relocation" in exchange for information on the financial activities of the Haitian criminal gangs Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif. This North American country accuses these two organizations of "resorting to violence and terror to maintain their ranks and finance their brutal operations". Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif obtain income through criminal activities such as extortion, kidnapping for ransom, arms and drug trafficking, vehicle hijacking, and theft of crops and livestock, detailed the office of Rewards for Justice at the U.S. Department of State. "If you have information about these activities and terrorist financial networks, send us your tip confidentially," states a post on X. "Help us cut off their source of funding. You could be entitled to relocation and a reward," the statement adds. Last August, the United States had already put a reward of up to five million dollars for revealing the whereabouts or facilitating the arrest of Jimmy Chérizier, alias Barbecue, leader of the armed coalition Viv Ansanm. Barbecue, along with his ally Bazile Richardson, alias Fredo, a Haitian naturalized U.S. citizen, were charged with a conspiracy for the illegal transfer of funds from the U.S. At that time, the prosecutor for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Ferris, announced that these groups were "in violation of the sanctions imposed by the United States". Last February, the United States also announced a reward of one million dollars for any information leading to the capture of the Haitian Johnson André, alias Izo, leader of the gang known as 5 Segond. Currently, much of Port-au-Prince is under the control of armed gangs, which, according to UN data, have expanded their domain to other departments of the country such as Center and Artibonito. Violence between gangs, security forces, private companies, and "self-defense" groups has caused 5,519 deaths and 2,608 injuries between March 1, 2025, and January 15 of this year, according to a new report published this week by the UN Office of the Human Rights Rights on the situation in that country. According to the report, the gangs have managed to fortify strategic corridors and maintain their control over critical maritime and land routes that sustain and finance their operations.
