UPDATE: No Generator

There is another part of our recent Lagonav adventure we want to tell you about.  You will remember about 2 weeks ago we found out the guesthouse was broken into and the generator along with some other things stolen.  Well, praise the Lord, the generator and many of the other items were found.

We arrived on the island last Monday to hear that they had also arrested a suspect.  Hoping to get our generator back we went down to the police station to meet with the judge and his clerk.  In Haiti, the judge is also the investigator in many of the cases they deal with.

It definitely had a third-world feel to it.  We waited in the open room of the police station entry.  The building roof is about ready to cave in, the ceiling fan and wires are gone.  In the back where the cells are there were several people hanging around, one having a bath.  We were ushered into the door where the judge sat behind the desk with his clerk.  They brought in the accused still handcuffed to sit beside us.  The questions went on for a while.

Then the police all suited up, gathered their weapons and we followed everyone down to the accused's house.  They searched his house again and went into the neighbors to look for things that had been stolen.  Meanwhile a crowd of about 40 had gathered to watch the proceedings.  The police officers with weapons drawn were standing nearby.  They looked kind of nervous.

Then it was off in convoy to our house.  Seemed that the judge was trying to determine if the guy really was involved and how they did it.  Seems they climbed the wall, broke into the generator shack which was empty, then used large bolt cutters to open the front door and stole the generator.  Then back to the police station to check the depot where they had stored some of our stolen things.  The room was stacked with solar panels, barrels of gas, food, all jumbled into the room.  I thought I better check the generator, and sure enough it worked.  Honda reliability!

Now we just have to get it back.  The whole situation requires a lot of wisdom.  A lot of the theft in Haiti is a result of desperation.  And this man lives in the poor part of the town of Ansagale.  But that does not make it right.  We told him we only want the names of the others involved and who it was that told them the generator was still in the house.  If it was indeed a vol konfyans, we need to know who was involved.  Pray that God would soften his heart.  Pray that everything related to the situation would be brought to light.

We will wait this one out because we don't want to set a precedent that will make us an easy target next time.  But we also want to show mercy.  We don't want to take it to the tribunal in Port-au-Prince because it would involve them taking all the evidence including our generator to Port.  The likelihood of everything disappearing is pretty high.  Thanks for lifting us and the situation up before the throne of grace.  We are thankful the main items have been found and we will eventually get them back.  God is good.