Friday, July 29, as part of the sinking of a Haitian migrant boat that killed 18 people on Sunday, July 24 https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37234-haiti-flash-shipwreck-in-the-bahamas-16-haitians-dead-and-21-survivors-provisional-report.html four men, including a Haitian national with a valid work permit, suspected of being smugglers involved in migrant smuggling, appeared before the Chief Magistrate JoyAnn Ferguson-Pratt of the Nassau District Court.

The four men: Donald Watson (39), McKenzie Jerome (53), Eland McKinney (49) and WiIlbens Joseph (37) a Haitian national with a work permit, have been charged with 18 counts of involuntary homiciden including an unborn male child of one of the victims.

Donald Watson and McKenzie Jerome were also charged with recklessly navigating a vessel and carrying passengers without a licence.

Should be noted that Watson is a repeat offender. In 2019 he was convicted in Florida of illegally smuggling an alien into the United States by sea at Palm Beach, where the ship was intercepted. Watson was sentenced to two years in prison and was released in 2021.

In court, the four men were not required to enter a plea and were denied bail. They will return to court on October 28 for service of the indictment.

In addition, activist Louby Georges reported that the Government of Haiti has pledged to cover the burial costs of those who died at sea "What I can confirm and what I also understand is that the Haitian government, the central government in Haiti, through the Minister of Foreign Affairs, has announced or given directive to the embassy in The Bahamas."

"Families of course may claim their loved one’s bodies and they will decide how they want to go about with the funeral services and everything but for those that are not claimed, definitely the Haitian government has decided that they will pay for the funeral costs so there won’t be any burden on the Bahamian government."

Earlier this week, Police Commissioner Clayton Fernander urged family members of victims who died in the boating tragedy to come forward to help with the identification process.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37282-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37263-haiti-bahamas-latest-information-on-the-haitian-survivors-of-the-shipwreck.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37242-haiti-shipwreck-in-the-bahamas-investigation-details-and-reactions.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37241-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37234-haiti-flash-shipwreck-in-the-bahamas-16-haitians-dead-and-21-survivors-provisional-report.html

HL/ HaitiLibre