Kidnapped Haiti missionaries used stars to map foot escape in dead of night

The dozen missionaries, including several minors, made the daring escape escape last week after two months of alleged captivity in Haiti.

The aid charity, Christian Aid Ministries, told CBS News on Monday that it had sent 17 missionaries to Haiti in October, who were kidnapped en route to an orphanage.

Although five missionaries were freed in recent weeks, a dozen or so had remained before an escape was made last week in the middle of the night.

“When they sensed the timing was right, they found a way to open the door that was closed and blocked, filed silently to the path that they had chosen to follow,” said the ministry’s spokesman Weston Showalter on Thursday.

“In the distance, they could see a mountain feature that they had recognised and identified in the previous days. They identified this landmark before and they knew that this was the direction they needed to go.”

He added: “They also followed the sure guidance of the stars as they journeyed through the night, traveling toward safety.”

“After a number of hours of walking, day began to dawn and they eventually found someone who helped to make a phone call for help,” he said. “They were finally free.”

A State Department spokesperson declined to comment to The Independent on the release of the individuals.

It remains unclear if Christian Aid Ministries or any other group paid ransom for their safe return, having been asked for millions of dollars in ransom by the notorious 400 Mawozo, a gang based in Haiti that has taken advantage of political and economic instability across the island nation.

Christian Aid Ministries said in a statement last week that the charity was not able to “provide the names of the people released, the circumstances of the release, or any other details” including whether any ransom was paid.