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Two US citizens named Jean-Dickens Toussaint and Abigail Toussaint traveled to Haiti and went missing. The couple from Florida reportedly went missing while they went to see their relatives and to attend a community festival. They got kidnapped on Saturday while traveling from Port-au-Prince.
It was discovered that the alleged kidnappers have asked for a ransom of $6,000. However, Jean’s sister Nikese mentioned that once the amount was paid, the ransom amount was raised to $200,000.
According to the US Department of State, officials are closely looking into the matter and trying to discover more about the couple.
Abigail Toussaint and her partner were allegedly kidnapped while on a trip to Haiti
An American couple named Jean-Dickens Toussaint and Abigail Toussaint went missing in Haiti, while the pair were on their way to visit a relative and attend a community festival. The couple’s niece Christie said:
“They stopped the bus at a stop and they asked for the Americans on the bus and their escorts to come off the bus and then they took them… I do have the worst-case scenario playing in my head, but I keep trying to reject it because I don’t want that to happen. We just want to hear their voices as proof that they are still alive.”
The US Department of State is yet to confirm the kidnapping, however, the department claimed that they are “aware of reports of two US citizens missing in Haiti.”
According to 22-year-old Christie, Abigail Toussaint, and her husband’s family learned about the kidnapping when a friend escorting the couple reached out to them. She further added that the family did not have “that type of money” to pay the $200,000 ransom.
The State Department has urged US citizens not to travel to Haiti for security purposes
The US Department of State issued a statement addressing the issue and said:
“The US Department of State and our embassies and consulates abroad have no greater priority than the safety and security of US citizens overseas. When a US citizen is missing, we work closely with local authorities as they carry out their search efforts, and we share information with families however we can. At this time, we have nothing further to share at this time.”
Jean’s sister Nikese spoke to media outlets and said that the couple also shares a 1-year-old son who wasn’t with them on the trip. The missing couple’s family further mentioned that they have been concerned about the trip to Haiti, considering the unrest situation.
Nikese Toussaint said:
“We were very worried when they said they were going, we told them not to go but they wanted to go.”
As has been mentioned before, Abigail Toussaint and her partner’s 1-year-old son, who wasn’t present with them when they disappeared, is currently with Abigail Toussaint’s father, that is his grandfather.
Law enforcement agencies are trying to get a hold of the couple’s whereabouts. The State Department has further warned American citizens not to travel to Haiti “due to kidnapping, crime, and civil unrest.”
