Haitian authorities say officers killed former rebel leader Wilfort Ferdinand after he allegedly opened fire at a police checkpoint earlier this week in the coastal city of Gonaïves.
Ferdinand, also known as Kòmandan Ti Wil, was a suspected gang leader and a key figure in the 2004 uprising that ousted former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. He led the Artibonite Resistance Front and was an ally of former rebel leader Guy Philippe.
“Police had no intention of killing anyone,” said Michel-Ange Louis Jeune, spokesman for Haiti’s National Police, speaking to The Associated Press. He said Ferdinand approached a checkpoint in a car with tinted windows, backed up, and then fired at officers, who returned fire, killing him and an unidentified passenger.
The checkpoint was part of ongoing operations against the Kokorat San Ras gang, which operates in the Artibonite region and is notorious for extreme violence.
Local media reported heavy gunfire shortly after the shooting. Graphic images of the incident circulated on social media, sparking protests in Gonaïves that have forced businesses to close.
