Haitian man rescued in boat incident, but unknown if it is missing rapper MechansT 

CAP-HAITIEN—Fishermen in the Bahamas have rescued four men, including one unidentified Haitian national, following a boating incident, prompting many to believe that it could be Haitian rapper Wens Jonathan ‘MechansT’ Désir, who has been missing in that country since July 4.

According to the Bahamas’ Public Affairs & Communication Department (PACD), in the early morning of July 11, a vessel with eight passengers onboard was traveling from Ocean Cay to Eleuthera when it began taking on water and sinking north of Morgan Bluff Andros. Local fishermen rescued four adult males, including one Haitian national.  

“He was in that area, but looking at the dates, it wouldn’t make sense,” Désir’s production manager, Chero Chérident, said on a WhatsApp call with The Haitian Times. “It couldn’t have been him.”

PACD has yet to reply to The Haitian Times’ request for more information about the identity of the Haitian national who was rescued from the boat incident.

Desir traveled to Great Abaco in the Bahamas for a May 18 concert. His older brother by two years, Steeven Desir, traveled with him, and the two stayed in an Airbnb. The older Desir left the Bahamas on May 24, leaving his brother, who wanted to extend his stay there. The two stayed in touch on a daily basis despite being in different countries. However, on July 4, Désir stopped hearing from the Haitian rapper. 

“He was in that area, but looking at the dates, it wouldn’t make sense. It couldn’t have been him.”

Chero Chérident, MechansT’s Production Manager

“I might be in my room alone, I don’t know, and tears might come out of my eyes because I miss the little guy but I can’t show people that I’m weak,” Steeven Desir, 33, said.

The Haitian Times has emailed the Bahamas police for comments but has not yet received a reply. 

Rumor of MechansT’s illegal crossing to the U.S. is unsubstantiated

Desir is one of the few top Haitian artists who does not have a visa to travel to the United States. Some YouTubers have made the claim that he was arrested while trying to go to the U.S. illegally by boat. His brother said that the family has not verified this rumor even after contacting the Bahamas and the U.S. 

“If he was doing something like that, unless he did it at the very last minute, he would have told me,” the rapper’s brother said. “We’re not just two brothers; we’re two homies. We grew up together. My mother never separated us from beds. When we finally slept on different beds, we were one on top, one at the bottom.”

The pair grew up in Carrefour and then Delmas, two communes in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. 

Fellow artists hope MechansT is safe.

Underground rapper Josue ‘Eclair 107′ Souffrant, for one, said if Désir truly disappeared, that would extremely affect him. “He is a jewel to me,” Souffrant said.

One of Souffrant’s favorite songs by MechansT is “Lol.” But some of Desir’s most known hits are Men Lap Fè Sa, Creole for “Look, It’s a Bloodbath” and Nap Kenbe, “We’re Holding On.”

Scores of fans and entertainers such as comedian Mazora, rapper Fantom and MechansT’s girlfriend Baboushie Désir have taken to social media to grieve about the rapper’s disappearance. 

“I wish that he finds his family and that his family finds him,” singer Paul Beaubrun, who is still unclear about the situation, told The Haitian Times. “I’m sending a prayer for him, positive energy to him and people praying for him.”

Desir stayed in The Bahamas longer for “vacation”

On May 14, the rapper will travel to the Bahamas with his brother, Steeven Desir, fellow artist Marshelle and her manager, his DJ, and another brother of his. 

Steeven Désir returned to Haiti on May 23 but his little brother stayed in Great Abaco for a “short vacation,” his brother said.

“He told me,” Désir said of MechansT, “If I go back to the country, I won’t be able to focus because I’m preparing for my 2025 album.”  According to Désir, MechansT said: “It’s calmer here. I’m staying here for a short vacation.”

However, Desir allegedly ended up staying in The Bahamas for about two months.

The two brothers stayed in touch for about every day on WhatsApp until July 4, when the rapper stopped responding to messages and phone calls, his brother said. Désir’s messages have not even delivered to his little brother’s phone. 

He then reached out to his brother’s girlfriend, who said she too stopped hearing from him as well. Désir also contacted the Airbnb his brother stayed in. It was while doing this mini-investigation that Steeven Désir started hearing the rumors about his brother getting intercepted while attempting to enter the U.S. illegally.  

“We’re doing everything we can to find MechansT right now because his family is inconsolable,” the rapper’s brother said. “My mom and dad are crying, so I have to stay strong.”

Désir’s production manager Chérident, is imploring people to contact the artist’s managerial team if they have information about his whereabouts or situation. 

“We need information,” Chérident said. “We’re not in the Bahamas; it’s people there who would know. If they know something, heard something or think they know something or if they have reliable information, they must contact us so we can do a follow-up.”

People can reach out to Désir’s managerial team via phone at +1 602-725-6444 or email at MechansTstaff@gmail.com.

MechansT’s disappearance underscores Haitian entertainers’ lack of protection in and outside of Haiti, as well as their need for counseling and accountability. Haitian entertainers are often without bodyguards, even when they are in the dangerous streets of Port-au-Prince. Haiti mourned the death of at least two well-known entertainers last year.

Rising rapper Marc Daniel Cuvier, who was better known as Asap Jexus, was killed and then burned in Port-au-Prince in November 2023. Comedian Ralph ‘Sexi’ Theodore was shot dead in Port-au-Prince in March 2023.

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Haitian man rescued in boat incident, but unknown if it is missing rapper MechansT  was first posted on July 16, 2024 at 3:05 pm.