In Carrefour, gangs are expelling residents who fail to pay their illegal tax.

Residents of several neighborhoods in Carrefour are now raising the alarm over violent gang operations aimed at enforcing this illegal tax

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In Carrefour, gang members are expelling residents who are unable to pay an illegal tax imposed on their homes, three residents told AyiboPost

Implemented since August through the registration of homes and the holding of planning meetings, this extortion scheme aims to collect several thousand gourdes from every residence and business in the municipality.

Its implementation was set for October 1.

Several residents from different neighborhoods in Carrefour are now warning of brutal gang interventions aimed at enforcing the illegal tax. Some people are placed under intense pressure to pay, while others are simply expelled from their homes because they lack the means to do so.

On the morning of October 7, this man learned over the phone from a family member that gang members had just evicted one of his relatives while he was preparing his lunch.

“Over the phone, I heard them tell the person who was in the house to sit outside so they could lock the door,” the man reported, speaking anonymously for fear of retaliation from the gangs.

After discussions, the gang members postponed the payment deadline until the following day, while threatening to permanently seize the property if the money was not paid.

The man also learned that gang members had beaten people in his neighborhood and had shut down several homes.

According to this father of five, the gangs’ campaign to collect money demanded from property owners began at the start of the week.

Early on October 7, gang members arrived at a rented residence belonging to one of the relatives of this second Carrefour resident.

“I wasn’t there. When the gang members arrived, they asked us where the money was. Then they said they were going to close the house,” the man explained.
Upon returning to the premises, the man found that some of the people present were crying. He learned that the criminals had also beaten several of them, in addition to making threats.

He said he was forced to negotiate the amount and then pay it in order to avoid immediate eviction.

The man, who says he feels as though he is living in a prison, explained: “We’re not paying for the house, we’re paying for our lives.”

Although he managed to find the money, he noticed that several neighboring houses had been locked, including that of a religious leader whose door had been padlocked by the gang members.

In Mon Repos, he knows a father who was driven from his home by gang members because he could not afford to pay.

In the municipality, no one has escaped gang extortion since 2024.

Businesses, merchants, public markets, taxi drivers and Madan Sara traders all pay money to members of the gang led by kingpin Christ-Roy “Krisla” Chery.

The latter faces several criminal charges, including crimes and kidnappings, and is actively wanted by the National Police.

Residents told AyiboPost that houses are marked by gangs according to their status.

Houses marked with a cross are unoccupied or abandoned and are therefore under gang control, allowing the gangs to rent them out to other occupants.

Meanwhile, houses whose occupants have not yet completed payment of their contribution are marked with a question mark, while an “OK” is written on homes for which payment has been approved.

By: Jérôme Wendy Norestyl

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