Notorious gang leader shot dead and 400 inmates escape during prison break

A gang-leader who escaped from prison has been shot dead and 400 inmates remained at large.

Arnel Joseph escaped from jail in the midst of a riot that lasted 24 hours in the outskirts of the capital Port-au-Prince.

On Thursday, the notorious gang-leader had broken out of prison along with others on February 25 – however the violent prison break left 25 people dead, including the prison director.

Secretary of Communication Frantz Exantus spoke about the mass escape and said: “Twenty-five people died including six prisoners and Divisional Inspector Paul Hector Joseph who was in charge of the prison.

“Among those killed were some ordinary citizens who were killed by the prisoners during their escape.”

Arnel Joseph, an arrested gang leader, was shot dead by cops

By Friday morning, 1,125 of the 1,542 prisoners at the Croix-des-Bouquets jail were in their cells, reports France24.

Joseph was gunned down 75 miles north of the prison at a police check point.

“Arnel Joseph was killed while attacking a police patrol which had stopped the motorcycle he was on. The police responded and Arnel Joseph is dead,” Exantus said.

25 people have died in the incident, including the prison director
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Haiti’s prime minister, Joseph Jouthe, told Le Nouvelliste that authorities have taken back control of the prison, which was also the site of a major prison break in 2014, during which hundreds of inmates escaped.

The criminal was arrested in 2019 after a manhunt that lasted a month, and was allegedly the head of one of Haiti’s main criminal networks.

He had also attempted to escape last year in July.

Want all the latest shocking news and views from all over the world straight into your inbox?

We’ve got the best royal scoops, crime dramas and breaking stories – all delivered in that Daily Star style you love.

Our great newsletters will give you all you need to know, from hard news to that bit of glamour you need every day. They’ll drop straight into your inbox and you can unsubscribe whenever you like.

You can sign up here – you won’t regret it…

Joseph was initially arrested and sentenced to six years in prison in 2011, he left in May 2017.

Also in 2011, he was convicted for the murder of several policemen.

Cops offered a $27,000 reward for information leading to his arrest in 2019 after he was accused of terrorism in Port-au-Prince.