JIMANI, Dominican Republic.- Air Force helicopters sent to the area Loma El Bejuco, site of the murder of four Haitians who were burning trees to make charcoal, retrieved the charred remains of their bodies and flown to the local hospital Friday morning to conduct autopsies.

Army soldiers of the 5th Brigade based in Barahona found the four bodies in the section Pinos del Eden near the town La Descubierta, a rugged area reached only on horseback, and radioed the helicopters which arrived to recover them, said Independencia province prosecutor Ruddy Perez Medrano.

He said arrest warrants have been issued for four Dominican farmers who allegedly murdered the Haitians, who according to a survivor were chopping down trees to make charcoal when the aggressors arrived.

Perez said Haiti Police official Daniel Laffront was asked to take part in the probe, whereas Army general Joaquin Virgilio Perez has been instructed to search the region for the suspects, also said to be cattle ranchers who attacked the Haitians in reprisal for the burning of the forests along the border. He said he’s also been instructed to determine if some military are involved in the deaths.

The official, who discarded that incident would spark tension along the border at Baoruco and Independencia provinces, added that forensic specialists arrived in Jimani from Azua Friday morning to conduct the autopsies. “I don’t believe the incident would lead to tension in the region because both Haitians and Dominicans consider it an atrocity.”

However, reports affirm that Thursday’s market at Jimani was suspended after the incident and that Haitians prevented Dominican trucks from entering Haiti through the nearby border crossing at Malpasse, although transit was restored by Friday morning.