The head of the National Police Academy of Haiti, where the country's police officers are trained, was shot dead Friday afternoon in the capital Port-au-Prince, the spokesman for the police told AFP. National Police.
Divisional Commissioner Harington Rigaud "
was shot in the head not far from the Academy
", reported Garry Desrosiers, who specified that the murderers had "
stolen his vehicle and kidnapped his driver
".
Harington Rigaud lost his life in an area controlled by gang leader Vitelhomme Innocent, the subject of a wanted notice from the US State Department because of his participation in the kidnapping of 16 American missionaries in October 2021. US authorities offer up to $1 million for information leading to his capture.
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The Caribbean country has been mired in a deep economic, security and political crisis for years and the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 has profoundly worsened the situation, with an increasingly strong hold by gangs.
Since June 2021, nearly 100,000 people have had to flee their neighborhoods to escape the violence of armed gangs, the United Nations said in a press release.
The Haitian police force, which amounted according to the UN to 13,000 active police officers in September, that is to say a ratio of approximately one police officer for 1000 inhabitants, is insufficient.
The Haitian government's request in early October for "
international assistance
" to resolve the security crisis has not yet been followed up.
