Haitian Mission Director and 2 American Missionaries Murdered in Haiti: ‘We Are All Devastated’

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An Oklahoma-based missionary group operating in Haiti's capital is in mourning after gang members killed three of its members, including an American couple in their 20s who recently were married. Davy and Natalie Lloyd of Missions in Haiti and mission director Judes Montis were ambushed and killed by gang members in Port-au-Prince Thursday, May 23, upon leaving a youth activity at a church. Davy Lloyd is the son of Missions in Haiti founders David and Alicia Lloyd, who were back in the U.S. at the time. Natalie is the daughter of Missouri state Rep. Ben Baker. 

Hundreds of people packed into a Port-au-Prince church for the funeral of Montis, according to the Associated Press. The service also honored the lives of the Lloyds. The bodies of the couple are being flown back to the U.S. Montis, 47, was married with two children, ages 6 and 2.

“We are facing the most difficult time of our life,” Missions in Haiti said on its Facebook page. “Thank you for all your prayers and support.”

Haiti is one of the world’s most dangerous countries for missions, with gangs controlling much of Port-au-Prince. Last summer, the U.S. State Department issued a “do not travel” memo due to kidnapping, crime, and civil unrest. The tragedy played out in real-time on Facebook, with Alicia Lloyd posting an urgent prayer request on Thursday evening that said Davy and Natalie were in danger but were still alive. At the time, gang members were outside a house threatening their lives while the couple communicated to the outside world via the Internet.  

“This evening when Davy, Natalie, and the kids were coming out of Youth at the church, they were ambushed by a gang of 3 trucks full of guys,” Alicia Lloyd wrote Thursday evening. “Davy was taken to the house tied up and beat. The gang then took our trucks and loaded everything up they wanted and left. Another gang came after to see what was going on and if they could help, so they say. No one understood what they were doing, not sure what took place but one was shot and killed and now this gang went into full attack mode. Davy, Natalie, and Judes [were] in my house at the end of the property using the star link internet to call me. So they are holed up in there, the gangs has shot all the windows out of the house and continue to shoot. Their lives are in danger.”

She added, “I have been trying all my contacts to get a police armored car there to evacuate them out to safety but can't get anyone to do. I also am trying to negotiate with the gang so how much $ to stand down and let them leave and get to safety.  PLEASE PRAY -- Going to be a long night.  The phones have all died I can't get a hold of anybody for the past several hours now to know what was going on.”

About three hours later, the Missions in Haiti Facebook page posted an update: “Davy and Natalie and Judes were shot and killed by the gang about 9 o'clock this evening. We all are devastated.”

The mission organization had been open about the dangers of operating a ministry in Haiti, writing in their May newsletter that the “humanitarian crisis in Haiti has worsened since our last newsletter” and that “gangs have taken control of even more area in and around Port au Prince.”

“We are very thankful that our area has continued to be relatively calm,” the May newsletter said. “The gang leader in our area controls one of the ‘nicer gangs’ in Haiti. This gang works to keep the ‘bad guys’ out of our area and we pray that they will continue to be strong enough to keep some semblance of peace in this area.” 

The newsletter said Natalie had been “helping with the kids at the House of Compassion and assisting in our ACE school,” while Davy had been “working on a lot of badly needed projects around our compound.” 

Launched in 1998, Missions in Haiti operates a children’s home known as House of Compassion which houses 36 children. The ministry also launched a boy's home, two churches and three schools, according to its website. 

“Our goal,” the website said, “is to see the Gospel of Christ make a difference in the lives of Haiti's young people.”

Photo credit: ©MissionsinHaiti.com / Missions in Haiti Facebook

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel. 

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