(NewsWorthy.news) – Two recently wed Christian missionaries were killed in an attack in Haiti on May 23, as gang violence continued to plague the country.
Republican Missouri Representative Ben Baker, whose daughter Natalie was killed in the attack, made the announcement on social media. Davy Lloyd, 23, and Natalie Lloyd, 21, were full-time missionaries to the nation, and were shot dead at 9 P.M. as Missions in Haiti Inc. reported. Baker said the bodies of his loved ones had been recovered by the U.S. State Department. According to Natalie’s Instagram account, the couple married in June 2022 and joined the mission shortly afterwards. The nonprofit Christian ministry was founded by David and Alicia Lloyd and has worked in the Caribbean since 2000.
Gang violence skyrocketed in Haiti in March 2024 as gang leaders called for the resignation of acting prime minister Ariel Henry, who fled the country and called on foreign governments such as Kenya’s to assist by sending in police to help curb the violence. Following Henry’s resignation, violence has not subsided, and Kenya has delayed its plans to send in a 1,000 strong force following the political upheaval.
At the end of April, Haiti swore in Fritz Bélizaire as its new prime minister, but still-powerful gangs demanded amnesty and political influence, threatening more violence if the government did not accept their demands. Hundreds fled their homes over the coming days as violence continued in the 80% gang-controlled capital of Port-au-Prince. According to Missions in Haiti, Davy and Natalie were at a youth group’s church gathering with several children in the capital when three trucks full of gang members “ambushed” them. Davy was taken to a house where he was tied and beaten, before another gang reportedly arrived at the scene.
Davy and Natalie along with Haitian native Jude Montis, who was the director of the Haiti group, were communicating with Missions in Haiti via satellite internet. According to Missions in Haiti, as they were hiding inside the gangs opened fire on the house, before the organization lost contact with the three victims. Hours later, Davy, Natalie and Jude were reported dead. Commenting on the tragedy, Baker wrote that his heart had been broken into “a thousand pieces”, and called on people to pray for his family and the victims.
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