U.S. Humanitarian Worker Convicted of Sexually Abusing 50+ Haitian Children

A man who operated an international humanitarian aid organization in Haiti has been sentenced to 165 years in prison for sexually abusing more than 50 children. 

Michigan resident Matthew Andrew Carter, 68, aka “William Charles Harcourt” and “Bill Carter,” resided at and operated the Morning Star Center in Haiti from 1995 to 2011. “He used his position of trust to abuse those in need of care,” said the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

According to court documents, the center provided food, shelter, clothing, school tuition, and other basic needs to children and helped their impoverished families. The U.S. Attorney’s office stated: 

“Carter used force to get these children to comply with his sexual demands and required the children to participate in sexual acts in order to receive food, remain at the center, and/or continue to receive school tuition payments.”

The official charges against Carter relate to child sex tourism. The island shared by Haiti and the neighboring Dominican Republic have begun to become known as the “Thailand of the West,” in that, like Thailand, many tourists visit the region for the purposes of having sexual experiences with children.

In a previous piece for Breitbart News, I wrote of the issue surrounding the region:

The US State Departments annual Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP) of 2012 reveals that the Dominican Republic is widely known for being a haven for adult male tourists who wish to have sexual intercourse with underage sex trafficking victims and states:

“The Dominican Republic is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor. Reports indicate that Dominican women and children are subjected to sex trafficking throughout the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean, Europe, South America, the Middle East, and the United States.”

The 2012 report specifically identifies the sex trafficking of minors and tourism and states:

“Additionally, child sex tourism is a problem, particularly in coastal resort areas of the Dominican Republic, with child sex tourists arriving year-round from the United States and European countries.”