Come to Haiti and get me, gang leader “Barbecue” dares US authorities after $5m bounty is placed on his head

13.8.2025
Haiti’s most feared gang leader Jimmy Chérizier, also known as “Barbecue,” has dared U.S. authorities to come to his country and get him after a bounty of $5m was placed on his head.
A Federal grand jury indicted him for violating sanctions and financing gang operations in the crisis-ridden Caribbean nation.
In a video statement, Chérizier defiantly declared, “My name is Jimmy Chérizier, BBQ. If the FBI wants me, I’m here.”
The U.S. Department of Justice unsealed the indictment on Tuesday, accusing Chérizier and a U.S. citizen, Bazile Richardson, of running a “broad conspiracy” to funnel money from the Haitian diaspora to fund gang violence.
Chérizier, leader of the Viv Ansanm gang alliance, was designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist in May.
“Chérizier’s reign of terror and mass violence against Haiti must come to an end,” said Chris Landberg, a senior State Department official.
Chérizier, a former police officer got the nickname “Barbecue” from the gangster’s habit of burning his enemies alive to project a ruthless image of himself
“Barbecue,” who also appears on a global terrorist list compiled by the United Nations, is the leader of an alliance of gangs that controls 80% of Port-au-Prince, the Caribbean nation’s capital.