Missionary couple from US killed in Haiti's capital
A U.S. missionary couple, including the daughter of a Missouri state representative, and a resident assisting them were killed in Haiti's capital city after heading out from a youth group activity, according to the family.
“My heart is broken in a thousand pieces. I’ve never felt this kind of pain,” a Facebook post from Missouri state Rep. Ben Baker (R) reads. “Most of you know my daughter and son-in-law Davy and Natalie Lloyd are full time missionaries in Haiti. They were attacked by gangs this evening and were both killed."
"They went to Heaven together," he added. "Please pray for my family we desperately need strength. And please pray for the Lloyd family as well. I have no other words for now.”
Lionel Lazarre, the head of a police union in Haiti, confirmed that the attack occurred Thursday in northern Port-au-Prince, according to reporting from The Associated Press.
The sister of Davy Lloyd, Hannah Cornett, said three vehicles with gang members in them halted the couple and Jude Montis, the group's director of missions, when they were going across a street, per the AP.
Cornett, who told the news wire that her family runs an orphanage, school and church in the Caribbean nation, said her brother was struck in his head by the barrel of a gun by gang members. From there, he was made to go upstairs, had belongings stolen and was left tied up.
When Davy was getting assistance in getting untied, a different group of armed gang members came around.
“Nobody knows what happened,” Cornett said, according to the AP.
The victim's sister added that a person gunmen opened fire when the couple and Montis tried to escape to a house in which her parents live.
“They tried to take cover in there, but the gang shot up the house,” Cornett said, noting the three deaths.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement Friday that the Biden administration extends its “deepest condolences to the families of the two U.S. citizens killed by gangs in Haiti.”
“On behalf of the President, our Ambassador in Haiti is in touch with the families who we know are experiencing unimaginable grief,” Miller said. “Our Embassy is ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance.”
The ongoing gang violence, which unraveled after the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, has displaced more than 362,000 people and has killed thousands in the island nation.
Conditions have dropped off in recent months as the gangs have grown in power. The crisis also forced the resignation of Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry in March, leaving a political vacuum.