Kenyan cop shot by gang dies in Haiti hospital

A Kenyan police officer on Sunday succumbed to gunshot injuries while receiving treatment in a hospital following a fierce clash with criminal gangs in Seguin in Pont-Sonde, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

The male officer was among a team that had embarked on a mission to crush a gang operating in the area when he was shot and seriously injured.

He was airlifted to Level Two Aspen Hospital where he succumbed to the injuries, the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in Haiti commander Godfrey Otunge said.

“On February 23, 2025, one of our MSS officers from the Kenyan contingent was injured during an operation in Segur-Savien in the Artibonite department. The officer was immediately airlifted to Aspen Level 2 Hospital but, unfortunately, succumbed to the injuries,” he said in a statement.

This marks the first casualty on the Kenyan team since they arrived there on June 25, 2024, to help the Caribbean nation contain criminal gangs.

Kenya has about 800 officers of the 1,000 needed.

Otunge said over the past week, Kenyan police officers have been conducting continuous security operations in Artibonite, successfully neutralizing several gangs.

In response, the residents of Seguin in Pont-Sonde began calling for similar action in their area.

“Hearing their pleas, the brave Kenyan police officers answered the call. This is the price our courageous officer paid—he was killed while fighting for the people of Haiti. His fellow officers, unwilling to accept the loss, pursued the gang member responsible and immediately neutralized him.”

He thanked the El Salvador Causality Evacuation  (CASEVAC) team who responded in a record time and the doctors at the hospital who did all they could do to save the officer’s life in vain.

The Kenyan team is part of a UN-approved international force that will be made up of 2,500 officers from various countries.

There are concerns that even if the team manages to dislodge the gangs from this stronghold, the absence of an immediate and lasting occupation by the police or the army will allow them to return quickly.

But even 1,000 security personnel or the mission’s targeted goal of 2,500 is insufficient, security experts say.

There are around nearly 900 police and troops from Kenya, El Salvador, Jamaica, Guatemala and Belize.