Haitian National Police have arrested Mesac Damas, 33, who is wanted by police in Naples in the death of five children and their mother.

Mario Andresol, the head of the HNP, told The Miami Herald that Damas was arrested Monday morning in Tabarre, a community near the Port-au-Prince airport.

In a press release posted on its website, the Collier County Sheriff's Office confirmed that police in Haiti have arrested a man believed to be Damas.

``The Collier County Sheriff's Office has been in communication with the FBI's legal attaché in the Dominican Republic. CCSO has been informed by that office that the Haitian national police have picked up a subject they believe to be Mesac Damas. This individual is now in Haitian police custody,'' the statement said.

A spokesman at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti said officials there have not yet confirmed that Damas is in Haitian police custody. Florida authorities began searching for him on Sunday, a day after his wife and their five young children were found dead in their North Naples home.

The sheriff's office said it is working through the FBI to confirm the identity of the individual and determine the appropriate international arrangements for detectives to travel to Haiti to interview the man should he be identified as Mesac Damas.

``It is important to note that Mesac Damas has not been charged with a crime relating to the deaths of his family members,'' the release said. ``However, today the Collier County Probation Department issued an arrest warrant for him today for violating probation on a January arrest for domestic violence. CCSO detectives are also working with federal officials to apply appropriate international extradition proceedings for the violation of probation warrant.''

Officials and the family of the husband believed Damas had traveled to Haiti. News reports said his car was found at Miami International Airport.

``People think that Haiti is a place that you can just run to and it is not. If we have information, we will act,'' said Andresol, noting that prior to Monday's arrest, HNP has arrested three other wanted fugitives in Haiti.

Haiti's police force has been criticized in years past for being corrupt and inept. But in recent years, the United States, Canada and the United Nations have spent millions on training and equiping the police department.

``We are trying to build a strong police force here,'' Andresol said. ``It is young, but we are working.''

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@