12 Christian Missionaries Escaped Captivity After Being Kidnapped in Haiti by 400 Mawozo Gang
Twelve missionaries out of the 17 members of the group abducted in Haiti had escaped their captors, the 400 Mawozo gangs.
A spokesman for the Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries said that 12 missionaries prepared overnight and found a way to open the door that was closed and blocked, The Daily Wire reported.
The group who escaped includes a 10-month-old baby and three additional children. In their escape, the group reportedly used the stars and a mountain for direction as they traveled 10 miles away from where they were held.
The spokesman, Weston Showalter, said that the group had eventually found someone who helped make a phone call for help after hours of walking. He said that the group was taken to Florida through a Coast Guard flight.
Sam Stoltzfus was one of the group of 17 missionaries that were kidnapped in Haiti on October 16. He said they made preparations and packed their bags with some of their belongings. He added that the escape had been in the planning for a while, according to a Miami Herald report.
Stoltzfus said that he believes that the gang members were awake when they fled. The group then spent six hours on Friday with the Federal Bureau of Investigation sharing their story.
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Abducted Christian Missionaries
Showalter said that the missionaries had set up a 24-hour prayer rotation, wherein they talked and sang through the walls to uplift the spirits of the hostages from other groups.
Stoltzfus confirmed that their captors were members of the 400 Mawozo gang. He said that he knew there were gangs in Haiti as he lived in the country for three years.
However, the missionary said that he never thought he would be a victim of kidnapping as the kidnapping of Americans had been unheard of.
Meanwhile, Showalter said that the hostages spoke to the gang leader on several occasions, talking about God's eventual judgment if he and the gang members continue to be part of the gang.
Showalter said that none of the hostages were physically hurt or abused by the kidnappers, although they were threatened on multiple occasions, according to an Aljazeera report.
The leader of the gang had earlier threatened to kill the missionaries in October.
The gang was reportedly using a Land Cruiser ambulance, a pickup truck, and another vehicle to abduct unsuspecting motorists.
Haiti has suffered from natural disasters, surging gang violence, and political turmoil made worse by the assassination of the country's president in July.
David N. Troyer, general director of Christian Aid Ministries, said that some unidentified people provided funds to pay for ransom and allow the negotiation process to continue.
Pierre Espérance said that missionaries' description of their escape was very unusual with mass kidnappings in the past have been resolved by the payment of ransom.
Espérance is a prominent human rights defender in Haiti.
Showalter said that the gang had also held other hostages in the same building.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Mary Webber
WATCH: Kidnapped missionaries make daring escape in Haiti - from Associated Press