(NewsNation) — The leader of a Haitian gang was sentenced to prison Monday for his role in a gunrunning operation and laundering ransoms for U.S. hostages.
Joly Germaine, 31, of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, was sentenced Monday to 35 years in prison for his part in the operation, which involved smuggling guns to Haiti in violation of United States export laws, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Eliande Tunis, a 46-year-old woman from Pompano Beach, Florida, who “styled herself as Germine’s ‘wife,’” pleaded guilty the day before her scheduled trial in January. She was sentenced to 12 1/2 years in prison earlier this month, according to a DOJ news release.
Two others, 31-year-old Jocelyn Dor and 35-year-old Walder St. Louis acted as straw gun purchasers for Germine and Tunis. Both pleaded guilty and were sentenced to five years and three years, respectively.
Germaine and Tunis were regarded as the “king” and “queen” of the 400 Mawozo gang, according to the release. The gunrunning scheme involved the purchase of at least 24 firearms in the U.S. using funds laundered from hostage ransoms for U.S. citizens in Haiti in 2021.
The purchased weapons included those designed for the military and close-quarters combat, such as AK-47s, AR-15s, an M4 Carbine rifle, an M1A rifle, and a .50 caliber rifle, which were smuggled from the U.S. to the gang in Haiti, according to the release.