Lay missionary and 3-year-old boy kidnapped from orphanage in Haiti

An aerial view of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. / Credit: arindambanerjee/Shutterstock

ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 7, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

On the morning of Sunday, Aug. 3, nine people working at an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, were kidnapped. Among them was a lay missionary and a disabled child, barely 3 years old.

According to the pontifical news agency Fides, the orphanage is located in Kenscoff, a town on the outskirts of the capital. It is run by the international charity Nos Petits Frères et Sœurs (Our Little Brothers and Sisters) and houses more than 240 children. The other seven people kidnapped are employees of the institution.

The kidnapped missionary is Gena Heraty, who has worked in the Caribbean country for more than 30 years. According to Fides, she was inside the orphanage when the criminals broke in, taking her and a disabled 3-year-old child.

In recent months, Haiti has been engulfed in a spiral of violence unleashed by criminal gangs operating freely and controlling approximately 80% of the Port-au-Prince area.

The Haitian bishops have issued several appeals for urgent help from the international community to reverse the situation and assist those most in need.

“This isn’t the first time the lay missionary has experienced such a tragedy. She was the victim of an armed robbery at the same orphanage in 2013. At that time, one of her colleagues was killed with a hammer while trying to protect her,” Fides reported.

Haitian authorities, in conjunction with UNICEF and the Haitian Institute for Social Welfare, have activated a plan to relocate the orphanage staff and children to a safer location. The area where the institution is located is controlled by the Viv Ansanm (Live Together) gang, which was recently designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States.

The Irish deputy prime minister, Simon Harris, referred to the kidnapping of Heraty as “deeply concerning” and demanded the release of all those kidnapped. Fides pointed out that, until now, no criminal group has claimed the attack.

The pontifical news agency stated that the Haitian authorities have not commented on the incident, despite the fact that the families of the victims are waiting for news of their loved ones. “The Irish Embassy is also closely monitoring developments,” the pontifical agency reported.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.