Haiti gang leader threatens to kill kidnapped American missionaries

FILE PHOTO: A sign reading "Bible Training Centre, Strive to receive praise from God" is seen at the Christian Aid Ministries compound after the abduction of a U.S.-based group of missionaries fueled international concerns over gang violence, in Titanyen, on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, Haiti October 18, 2021. REUTERS/Ralph Tedy Erol

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) -A Haitian man identifying himself as the leader of the gang that kidnapped a group of American and Canadian missionaries said in a video posted on YouTube on Thursday that he was willing to kill "these Americans" if he does not get what he needs.

The speaker in the video, dressed in a purple suit, is recognizable as the man known in Haiti by the alias Lamo Sanjou, the leader of the 400 Mawozo gang https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haitis-400-mawozo-rose-petty-crime-gang-major-kidnapping-ring-2021-10-21 that authorities say is behind the abduction of the missionaries at the weekend.