WASHINGTON – A criminal complaint, filed in the District of Columbia and unsealed, charges Johnson Andre, aka “Izo,” a Haitian national and leader of the 5 Segond gang, for his alleged role in the March 2023 armed hostage-taking, in Haiti, of a U.S. citizen who was held for ransom by Andre’s gang.
The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the Miami Field Office.
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According to the affidavit in support of the complaint, Andre and the 5 Segond gang operate in Village de Dieu, Haiti, which is a town on the outskirts of the capital city Port-au-Prince. The gang actively participates in kidnappings for ransom and robberies and uses the revenue generated from its criminal activity to pay salaries to its members and pay for weapons and ammunition from the United States and elsewhere.
As leader of the 5 Segond gang, Andre issued a general order to his gang members to identify potential victims and kidnap them for ransom. On March 18, 2023, armed gang members forced the victim into a vehicle at gunpoint. The victim was taken to Village de Dieu where he was held in captivity for nine days during which he was beaten and burned with hot plastic. At one point, Andre visited the victim in captivity and engaged in ransom negotiations with the victim’s family. The victim was eventually released from captivity on March 27, 2023, following a ransom payment and other items of value that were provided to the gang.
Andre remains at large and is believed to reside in Village de Dieu, Haiti. On December 8, 2023, Andre was sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for his role in serious human rights abuse relating to his role as a leader of a criminal gang in Haiti according to Executive Order 13818.
If convicted, Andre faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Miami Field Office, with the assistance of the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Haiti and with valuable assistance from the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack F. Korba with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Michael Watts for the District of Columbia.
