The Gran Grif gang of Savien orchestrated an attack against the residents of downtown Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite during the night of December 10 to 11, 2024. Initial reports from local media estimate the number of victims at “at least 15 residents killed, including 2 little girls and 2 little boys, 10 houses burned, 3 vehicles set on fire, and several dozen people kidnapped,” even as police forces “returned fire against the heavy gunfire from the criminals.”
“Petite-Rivière is devastated and stunned,” stated the president of the interim municipal commission, Me Dort Lereste, who “is multiplying institutional efforts to try to assist the population.”
The data appears to be provisional, as “the bandits, armed with heavy-caliber weapons and riding motorcycles, were still operating on the morning of Wednesday, December 11, 2024, in Haut Bouc, behind the Lycée Henri Christophe,” reported James Pierre, CEO of Ti Rivyè Enfo, who noted that “kidnapped people were killed along the way, and bodies were discovered in houses where all the residents had been executed.”
“We need to wait for the bandits to leave to get an accurate assessment of the tragedy,” said the head of Ti Rivyè Enfo to the newspaper’s editorial staff, explaining that “most Rivartibonitians are locking themselves in their homes to survive the fury of gangsters who want to prove that the police presence in the area means almost nothing to them.”
“Everything started on the evening of Tuesday, December 10, around 8:24 p.m., when automatic gunfire was heard, continuing until about 2 a.m. on Wednesday, December 11,” recounted Horace Bertide.
The spokesperson for the Commission for Dialogue, Reconciliation, and Awareness to Save Artibonite (CDRCSA) is calling on “members of the Transitional Presidential Council and government ministers to provide all the necessary material resources to local authorities to eliminate the Savien gang in its stronghold.”
Recognizing that “the police and judiciary show some willingness to fulfill their mission in the region,” the prominent figure of the CDRCSA advocates for a serious handling of Artibonite’s security issues. According to Horace Bertide, “only a robust operation by the Haitian National Police (PNH) and the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) in Savien will bring peace of mind to Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite and surrounding communes.”
Just three days after the recovery of the Petite-Rivière police station by specialized PNH units and MSSM members, the Gran Grif gang continues to demonstrate its strength. Rivartibonitians are fleeing once again. The carnage was foretold twenty-four hours in advance by those who remain and who grimly predict the next massacre.