So yesterday I went to the place that that the US embassy advised me to go to report being robbed by policia national. All the information on the Embassy website was wrong. I was directed to go to the main policia national office. Once there I was shuffled from person-to-person, basically no one wanted to deal with the situation.
Finally after sitting in the corner for 20 minutes and no one paying attention to me ( I was instructed to sit down and wait) I saw a local business owner that I've known for over a year. I told him that I was robbed by two policemen and he called over someone and told them my story I was finally taken into the building. There I told my story to a woman who asked me some questions which I answered without problem. She asked if I could ID the people and I said definitely. I spent 3 hours there only for them to tell me to come back the next day to ID the guys.
TODAY, I show up at 7:50am. As I am walking into the building, the main police officer who took my money, knife, and was slapping me and threatening to cut my hair is getting his shoes shined. I tuck my head and walk towards the front door. He sees me and runs over and pushes me against the wall and begins threatening me and calling me an evil haitian. I tell him, " No me toques." many times and look around for the many police who are standing around watching to do something. The guy continues yelling and backing me repeated into the wall and threatening to beat me. Finally someone intervened and pulled him back. He continued to threaten me (yelling very loudly in the quiet morning) and call me an "Diablo Haitiano".
Finally the woman I was talking to the previous day comes out and sees me standing there. I tell her that this is why I didn't want to come back and do the face-to-face identification. I am escorted back into her office for 4.5 hours. They paraded multiple ranking policemen into the office to say that I should fear the police and that they are there to protect me. Like I said, I spent 4.5 hours in that office(I wasn't allowed to leave) and all they did was write down my statement. I kept asking if I could leave and they kept telling me no that they were still investigating. All-this-time, I see the two policemen who assaulted and robbed me walking the halls, laughing, working, and looking into the office at me.
I think that they were hiding me from the press that was all around. When one asked me why I was there, the lady policeman told him not to ask me. At first I thought they were really trying to help me, but after 4 hours it was clear nothing was going to happen. They asked me multiple times if i got my money and knife back would I be okay with that. I told them I just don't want anymore problems, but yes I would like my things returned.
THE RESULT:
The 2 policemen are currently still working in uniform with all police equipment, though they had their pistols taken from them. For how long I don't know. In all I wasted 7.5 hours (literally) sitting in an office while nothing happened.
They kept telling me that they were here to protect me and I shouldn't be afraid, but when I report that I was robbed, identify the people who did it, the people get caught in lies and ultimately admit it and present the option of returning my things....AND STILL NOTHING HAPPENS to them... Yea, I feel real safe. If I hadn't so my friend the local INFLUENTIAL business owner at the police station they wouldn't have even done the little that they did.
I will definitely be reporting this to the local press and someone at the Embassy. Another example of this country biting the hand that feeds them.
Finally after sitting in the corner for 20 minutes and no one paying attention to me ( I was instructed to sit down and wait) I saw a local business owner that I've known for over a year. I told him that I was robbed by two policemen and he called over someone and told them my story I was finally taken into the building. There I told my story to a woman who asked me some questions which I answered without problem. She asked if I could ID the people and I said definitely. I spent 3 hours there only for them to tell me to come back the next day to ID the guys.
TODAY, I show up at 7:50am. As I am walking into the building, the main police officer who took my money, knife, and was slapping me and threatening to cut my hair is getting his shoes shined. I tuck my head and walk towards the front door. He sees me and runs over and pushes me against the wall and begins threatening me and calling me an evil haitian. I tell him, " No me toques." many times and look around for the many police who are standing around watching to do something. The guy continues yelling and backing me repeated into the wall and threatening to beat me. Finally someone intervened and pulled him back. He continued to threaten me (yelling very loudly in the quiet morning) and call me an "Diablo Haitiano".
Finally the woman I was talking to the previous day comes out and sees me standing there. I tell her that this is why I didn't want to come back and do the face-to-face identification. I am escorted back into her office for 4.5 hours. They paraded multiple ranking policemen into the office to say that I should fear the police and that they are there to protect me. Like I said, I spent 4.5 hours in that office(I wasn't allowed to leave) and all they did was write down my statement. I kept asking if I could leave and they kept telling me no that they were still investigating. All-this-time, I see the two policemen who assaulted and robbed me walking the halls, laughing, working, and looking into the office at me.
I think that they were hiding me from the press that was all around. When one asked me why I was there, the lady policeman told him not to ask me. At first I thought they were really trying to help me, but after 4 hours it was clear nothing was going to happen. They asked me multiple times if i got my money and knife back would I be okay with that. I told them I just don't want anymore problems, but yes I would like my things returned.
THE RESULT:
The 2 policemen are currently still working in uniform with all police equipment, though they had their pistols taken from them. For how long I don't know. In all I wasted 7.5 hours (literally) sitting in an office while nothing happened.
They kept telling me that they were here to protect me and I shouldn't be afraid, but when I report that I was robbed, identify the people who did it, the people get caught in lies and ultimately admit it and present the option of returning my things....AND STILL NOTHING HAPPENS to them... Yea, I feel real safe. If I hadn't so my friend the local INFLUENTIAL business owner at the police station they wouldn't have even done the little that they did.
I will definitely be reporting this to the local press and someone at the Embassy. Another example of this country biting the hand that feeds them.
