Crisis in Haiti: Who is “Barbecue”, the powerful gang leader spreading terror in Port-au-Prince?

Scenes of chaos in Haiti. Armed gangs have taken control of parts of the poor Caribbean country, including the capital Port-au-Prince, since Thursday in a bid to oust unpopular Prime Minister Ariel Henry. Four police officers were killed in clashes with armed gangs and at least ten people died during the escape of several thousand prisoners this weekend. The frantic government declared a state of emergency and curfew on Sunday.

Behind these brutal attacks is Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, considered the leader of the most powerful gang in Port-au-Prince. In a video posted on social media on Thursday, he took responsibility for “everything that happens on the streets.” He also confirmed that “all armed groups will act to force the resignation of the Prime Minister” and “use all strategies to achieve this goal.”

This former Haitian policeman is the head G9, a criminal alliance of nine of the most powerful gangs in the capital. With thousands of men at his service, he controls most of the city and regularly carries out brutal attacks. So much so that since 2022 he has been subject to UN sanctions for his criminal activities, as he is accused of “undermining the peace, stability and security of Haiti and the region,” recalls the news channel La 1ère.

Jimmy Cherizier, however, positions himself as a revolutionary and defender of the Haitian people, whose goal is to upend the political spectrum, which he blames for corruption and for plunging the country into deep poverty. “My goal is to eliminate and arrest corrupt politicians” to end instability in Haiti, he explained to Le Figaro newspaper last year.

The victims were burned alive

Before becoming one of Haiti’s most powerful mafiosi, Jimmy Cherizier spent about fifteen years in the ranks of an elite unit responsible for fighting gangs. But between 2017 and 2018 he was accused of human rights abuses after participating in summary executions of civilians during anti-gang operations. In particular, he took part in the La Saline massacre, the worst massacre that Haiti has experienced in the last ten years, during which more than 70 people were killed, recalls Courrier International. He was fired from the police a month after this tragedy.

After this, Jimmy Cherizier would gradually establish himself as the leader of the gang and expand his influence in several areas of Port-au-Prince. In June 2020, in a YouTube video, he announced the creation of the G9, which he presented as a way to restore peace in the Haitian capital. According to Courrier International, during those years he enjoyed material, logistical and financial support from senior officials of the Mosaic government to carry out targeted killings.

His gangs “kidnap, steal, kill, spread terror, impose their laws with complete impunity,” as La 1ère described in 2021. The attacks, signed by Jimmy Cherizier, often involve violent fires and victims being burned alive. According to several Haitian observers, this is why he received the nickname “Barbecue”. This is disputed by the main person concerned, who explained to Le Figaro that it stems from his youth when he sold fried meat on the streets of Port-au-Prince.

Overthrow Ariel Henry “at the cost of blood”

In July 2021, the assassination of President Moïse plunged Haiti into a serious security crisis, with criminal gangs taking advantage of this to control much of the country. According to the UN, more than 8,400 people were victims of gang violence in 2023, including deaths, injuries and kidnappings, “an increase of 122% compared to 2022.” Barbecue, as a link between the capital’s gangs and officials, took advantage of this chaos to expand its territorial control.

As soon as the prime minister was appointed interim president in July 2021, Jimmy Cherizier called for his resignation and an armed uprising of the population. “At the cost of blood we will remove Ariel Henry from the post of Prime Minister, and after that the keys to the country will pass to a new class of men and women of civil society who will have to play the card of good governance that is likely to lead the country out of the quagmire in which it has floundered for many centuries “he said during a press conference in November 2021, La 1er recalls.

At the end of February 2024, when Ariel Henry was about to leave office, Barbecue announced the unification of all gangs in the capital to overthrow the government. Since then, the country has been paralyzed by clashes between criminal gangs and the police. Jimmy Cherizier promised that “the battle will last as long as it takes.”