US sanctions former Haitian security chief, gang leader

The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday imposed sanctions on the former head of Haitian presidential security and a notorious gang leader, accusing both men of aiding a powerful criminal coalition that Washington earlier this year labeled a foreign terrorist organization.

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The sanctions target Dimitri Herard, a former police officer who was imprisoned in connection with the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, and Kempes Sanon, leader of the Bel Air gang, one of several groups that make up the Viv Ansanm coalition.

According to the Treasury, Herard “colluded” with Viv Ansanm after escaping from prison in 2024, providing “training and firearms” to gang leaders and backing coordinated attacks against state institutions.

Sanon, the agency said, helped the coalition consolidate power in Haiti through “indiscriminate civilian killings, extortion, illicit taxation, and kidnappings.”

“Today’s action underscores the critical role of gang leaders and facilitators like Herard and Sanon, whose support enables Viv Ansanm’s campaign of violence, extortion, and terrorism in Haiti,” Bradley T. Smith, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control, said in a statement.

The sanctions freeze all properties owned by the two men in the United States and prohibit any U.S.-based business transactions with them.

Gang violence has engulfed Haiti since Moïse’s assassination, leaving the government in disarray and much of the capital under gang control. Despite international efforts, the escalating conflict continues to destabilize the Caribbean nation.