Overview:
A U.S. federal judge sentenced Haitian gang leader Joly Germine to life in prison for orchestrating the 2021 kidnapping of 16 American missionaries. The sentencing follows growing U.S. efforts to crack down on Haitian gang leaders, including a $5 million bounty placed on another powerful figure, Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier.
A federal judge sentenced Haitian gang leader Joly Germine to life in prison on Tuesday for orchestrating the 2021 kidnapping of 16 American missionaries in Haiti, a case that has come to symbolize the growing reach of Haiti’s gang violence and the intensifying U.S. response.
Germine, 34, known as “Yonyon,” was the self-described “king” of the 400 Mawozo gang, which operated in the Croix-des-Bouquets area east of Port-au-Prince. He was convicted in May on 17 counts, including conspiracy to commit hostage taking and 16 counts of hostage taking of U.S. nationals for ransom. Judge John D. Bates ordered him to serve life without the possibility of supervised release and pay a $1,700 fine.
The missionaries—members of Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries—were abducted on Oct. 16, 2021, while returning from an orphanage. Among them were 12 adults and five children, including an 8-month-old baby and a 3-year-old child. The other three children were 6, 14 and 15 years old. One of the adults was a Canadian citizen. Most were held for 62 days in rural captivity while Germine directed gang operations from prison using unmonitored cellphones.
According to court documents, Germine, already serving a 35-year sentence for arms trafficking and money laundering, used the hostages as leverage in an attempt to secure his release from prison. The gang initially demanded $1 million per hostage and, after receiving $350,000 for the release of three victims, refused to free the others, hoping instead to negotiate Germine’s freedom. The remaining hostages escaped under the cover of night on Dec. 16, 2021, walking five hours through the Haitian countryside before being secured by the FBI and flown out of Haiti.
“This sentencing makes clear that Germine’s scheme to win freedom for himself by using Christians as pawns backfired,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement.
The sentencing comes as the U.S. intensifies its crackdown on Haitian gang leaders. In August, The Haitian Times reported that federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, head of the G9 Family and Allies gang coalition, for allegedly violating U.S. sanctions and funneling money from Haitian diaspora members in the U.S. to fund his criminal enterprise.
Cherizier, a former Haitian National Police officer, has been under U.S. sanctions since 2020 and was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization leader in 2025. Prosecutors allege he conspired with Bazile Richardson, a U.S. citizen arrested in Texas, to finance his gang’s operations, including the purchase of firearms. The U.S. is now offering a $5 million reward for information leading to Cherizier’s arrest or conviction.
“There’s a good reason that there’s a $5 million reward,” Pirro said in August. “He’s a gang leader responsible for heinous human rights abuses, including violence against American citizens in Haiti” .
The FBI and Homeland Security Investigations continue to urge the public to share any tips on Cherizier’s whereabouts.
Meanwhile, Germine’s case represents one of the most high-profile convictions to date stemming from Haiti’s spiraling security crisis. During his trial, prosecutors presented evidence that he set ransom demands, coordinated hostage movements, and refused releases, despite knowing some victims had urgent medical needs.
The FBI’s Miami Field Office led the investigation, with support from multiple U.S. federal agencies and the governments of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
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