Haiti police seize high-powered 'weapon of war,' kill several gang members

Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald on Nov 14, 2025

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Several alleged gang members were killed in Haiti on Friday during intensified security operations in the eastern plains of Port-au-Prince, where police successfully recovered a high-powered sniper rifle known as a “weapon of war” but were forced to destroy a helicopter used in their operations.

Haiti National Police Spokesman Garry Desrosiers told the Miami Herald that at least seven gang members were killed during the operations, in which police recovered a Barrett .50-caliber sniper rifle. The semiautomatic rifle is so powerful it can pierce cinder-block walls and most armored vehicles.

“We are in full combat,” Desrosiers said, declining to provide additional details about the operations, including reports that a helicopter used by a government task force was struck by gunfire and was subsequently destroyed.

A Haiti National Police source confirmed the chopper’s destruction to the Herald, saying the aircraft was destroyed to keep it from falling into gangs’ hands.

According to sources and social media posts, the chopper went down while providing aerial support for the operation. The helicopter, used by the weaponized-drone task force overseen by former Blackwater founder Erik Prince, was struck by gunfire over the Morne Cabrit ridge. The aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in the Santo 10 area, a zone under gang control.

A source familiar with the operations said the chopper landed safely, and the crew sustained only minor injuries. But while task-force personnel quickly secured the landing site, gangs were maneuvering toward the perimeter, prompting the deployment of additional aircraft and vehicles to deal with the situation. On Friday afternoon, a SWAT team was attempting to take a crane and trailer to recover the chopper, but the situation remained difficult, given gangs’ influence in the area.

The stepped-up security operations began Sunday and are ongoing, Desrosiers said. They are targeting multiple armed groups, including the 400 Mawozo gang, which controls large swaths of eastern Port-au-Prince leading to the border with the Dominican Republic, and its leader, Joseph Wilson, also known as Lanmò SanJou. Wilson, who has a $1 million bounty on his head, is among several gang members wanted by the FBI.

Police have not publicly identified who was killed or wounded, but security observers note that the second-in-command of 400 Mawozo is among the recent casualties and the gang’s third-in-command has been seriously wounded. The security operations have led to widespread panic and erratic movements among gang members who on Friday were involved in violent clashes with police in several other areas of metropolitan Port-au-Prince.

The increased gunfire and drone activity by a government task force led to repeated warnings for civilians to shelter in place and avoid exposed areas.

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