The frequency of kidnappings and attempted kidnappings in Delmas is fueling citizens’ anxiety, who, without much hope, are asking themselves what the police are doing. “Several cases have been reported in recent weeks. The modus operandi is the same. The kidnappers, heavily armed, travel in all-terrain vehicles. In some cases, they appear to carry out targeted kidnappings. In others, they abduct people at random,” explained, this Tuesday, December 2, a source who spoke to Le Nouvelliste, who would like to see better policing of the commune of Delmas by law enforcement. For several days, reports published notably on social networks have shown clear signs of an increase in kidnapping cases in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince, after a considerable decrease over the last few months. The communes of Delmas and Pétion-Ville are believed to be the main ones affected by this resurgence in kidnapping cases, this source said.

The fear of being kidnapped has been mentioned by many since the fall. The director of the Episcopal Commission Justice and Peace (CE-JILAP), Jocelyne Colas, interviewed in mid-October by Magik 9, confirmed this trend. “Indeed, we have the impression that kidnapping has seen a resurgence,” confirmed Ms. Colas, who made a point of clarifying that kidnapping never really disappeared. “We had the impression that they had stopped, but in reality, that wasn’t the case. It seems they were preparing or waiting for orders to start again,” she added. A situation that is catching everyone off guard since, for the moment, law enforcement does not “seem to have a grasp on the reality of kidnapping,” Jocelyne Colas had assessed.