Croix-des-Bouquets: Haitian police find the burned vehicle of the four missing Salvadoran technicians, who are still missing

The Haitian National Police (PNH) said on Wednesday, November 4, that it had recovered the vehicle in which the four Salvadoran military technicians missing since October 18 in Croix-des-Bouquets were travelling. The vehicle had been set on fire by members of armed gangs, according to the police, cited by the Dominican newspapers El Día and El Nuevo Diario.

The vehicle was found during a search operation carried out on Monday, November 2, in Santo, in the commune of Croix-des-Bouquets, by Haitian police officers, members of the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) and Salvadoran soldiers, according to a statement from the PNH's communications department. The four Salvadorans were not found, and their whereabouts remain unknown.

Drones and heavy machinery

According to the police report, the operation began at around 6:30 a.m. It involved specialized PNH units, including UDMO, BRI, UTAG, SWAT and Task Forces, as well as drones and heavy machinery used to clear several barricades set up in the area. The forces met no resistance, both newspapers report, and the PNH credits aerial surveillance by drones for the smooth running of the operation.

Conflicting accounts

The four Salvadoran aviation technicians, members of the GSF, went missing on October 18 in an ambush blamed on gangs in Croix-des-Bouquets. The Haitian government says they were kidnapped, and Salvadoran authorities say they still hope to find them alive. The leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, Wilson Joseph, known as "Lanmò Sanjou," told The Associated Press they were dead, without providing evidence, according to El Día. On October 25, Nayib Bukele said that human remains handed over to the GSF were not those of the four men.

Their disappearance led El Salvador to deploy more than 2,000 troops to Haiti. The search continues.