A notorious gang leader in Haiti, who once worked as a math and physics teacher, has been killed in the neighborhood he controlled for years, according to local media reports on Monday. Iskar Andrice, also known as Iscar Andris, was a feared figure in the Belekou community of the Cite Soleil slum. His death has raised concerns about an escalation of gang violence in the area.
Former mayor Esaïe Beauchard described Andrice as an intelligent man and expressed regret that he had turned to a life of crime. Details about the exact day of Andrice’s death remain unclear. The current mayor of Cite Soleil, Jean-Frédérique Islain, declined to comment on the matter.
Andrice’s gang was involved in various criminal activities, including murder, robbery, extortion, rape, and hijacking. He later joined forces with Jimmy Chérizier, a prominent gang leader known as Barbecue, to form the powerful “G9 Family and Allies” alliance, the largest gang group in Haiti.
Chérizier had to seek Andrice’s approval before granting media interviews. Andrice, like other gang leaders, established the Siloé Foundation in 2015 as a social initiative to gain support from the community he controlled and portray a positive image of himself.
Andrice and other gang leaders were accused of carrying out deadly raids on Haitian neighborhoods, targeting civilians. The nonprofit National Human Rights Defense Network in Haiti reported that they were also responsible for disrupting operations at a major fuel terminal in the capital city of Port-au-Prince last year. This incident paralyzed the country and prompted Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry to request urgent deployment of a foreign armed force.
The death of Andrice leaves a void in the gang-controlled area, raising concerns that gang violence could further escalate in the near future.
