PORT-AU-PRINCE, March 25 - The U.S. on Wednesday unveiled an offer of up to $3 million and the possibility of relocation in exchange for information about the financing of two Haitian criminal coalitions, Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif.
Washington has designated both organizations as terrorist entities. The groups are described as coalitions that bring together hundreds of gangs operating in Port-au-Prince, the Artibonite farming region and parts of central Haiti. The announcement represents a change in U.S. tactics - whereas earlier bounties targeted individual gang leaders, the current approach aims at the groups' financial infrastructures.
Haitian security forces, backed by a U.N.-supported force deployed three years ago and a U.S. private military company, have stepped up operations against the armed gangs that now control large portions of the capital. Despite intensified operations, authorities have not yet secured the arrest of any major gang leader.
Once reliant on patronage from elites, Haiti's gangs have become more self-sufficient economically as they solidified control over Port-au-Prince and extended their reach into rural areas. The groups are accused of a wide range of revenue-generating and criminal activities. Among their alleged methods of raising funds are extortion at checkpoints and on roads, thousands of ransom kidnappings, trafficking in firearms and drugs, organ trafficking, and theft of vehicles, buildings and crops.
The ongoing conflict with gangs has driven more than 1.4 million people from their homes and worsened food insecurity across the country. Close to 20,000 people have been reported violently killed in Haiti since 2021, with the death toll increasing each year.
The United Nations states that most gang-related killings involve firearms that are trafficked into Haiti illegally. Many of those weapons are believed to be coming through U.S. ports in Florida and Georgia, according to the U.N. assessment cited in the announcement.
Contextual sidebar - investment note included in original announcement:
Material accompanying the announcement highlighted a related promotional note about investment research tools, stating that selecting investments benefits from better data and AI-powered insights. That promotional content suggested services that combine institutional-grade data with AI to assist investors in finding opportunities for 2026.