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A Michigan pastor who leads the congregation that includes six of the missionaries among the 17 Americans and one Canadian held captive in Haiti for two months before they were finally freed said the kidnap victims were 'treated relatively well' during the ordeal. 

'God has answered our prayers,' Reverend Ron Marks of Hart Dunkard Brethren Church told Good Morning America. 'We're rejoicing and a great load is lifted.'  

The remaining 12 Christian Aid Missionaries (CAM) from a group of 17 kidnapped in October were released Thursday, ending a saga that brought global attention to the Caribbean nation's growing problem of gang abductions. 

Five of the hostages had been freed in recent weeks, and the final dozen were found by authorities in the remote mountain Morne à Cabrit, said police spokesman Garry Derosier. 

'They were treated relatively well,' Marks said. 'I'm still waiting to hear the rest of their story. I'm sure they weren't treated supremely, life in Haiti is hard even at its best,' the pastor said. 

'I think if there had been any severe problems, any injuries, or any illnesses that they had, we would have probably heard.'  

Derosier declined to provide further details on their condition or how they were found. 

Reverend Ron Marks of Hart Dunkard Brethren Church leads the congregation where six of the 16 Americans and one Canadian kidnapped missionaries attended. He said the missionaries were treated 'relatively well'  

People are pictured embracing on the Christian Aid Missionaries in Haiti after the release of remaining 12 captives

The names of the freed missionaries, who have yet to return to the US, have not been released 

Cars are seen being packed as the rescued missionaries prepared to return home

The kidnapping of the American Canadian missionaries brought global attention to the Caribbean nation's growing problem of gang abductions. People were seen being driven around the Christian Aid Missionaries campus in Haiti 

The names and locations of the rescued missionaries have not been released but CAM, which is based in Ohio, said the hostages were 12 adults aged 18 to 48, and five children ranging in age from eight months to 15 years. 

The five children and their mother all attended Marks's church in Oceana County, Michigan. 

The group was abducted by a gang known as 400 Mawozo on October 16 and had demanded $1 million per missionary. It's unclear if any ransom was. 

'I knew the FBI was involved, I do not know to what extent, I do not know what the final terms were, I just know they're free,' Marks said to 9&10 News. 

He believes they are still in Haiti. 

US officials have yet to release details but said the missionaries will be reunited with loved ones soon. 

A man embraces a missionary at the Christian Aid Ministries headquarters at Titanyen, north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, after the 12 remaining members of a U.S.-based missionary group who were kidnapped two months ago were freed 

Five of the hostages had already been freed in recent weeks, and the final dozen were found by authorities on a mountain called Morne à Cabrit, said police spokesman Garry Derosier

Some of the children who were among the hostages are loaded into the car after being rescued

The remaining 12 American and Canadian missionaries from a group kidnapped in October in Haiti were released Thursday. They are pictured boarding a car 

A woman takes a photo of members of the Christian Aid Ministries who are departing to the airport from the group's headquarter at Titanyen, north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Thursday 

Unidentified people carry bags to a vehicle before departing to the airport from the Christian Aid Ministries headquarters at Titanyen, north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Thursday

A caravan drives to the airport after departing from the Christian Aid Ministries headquarters at Titanyen, north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti 

'Join us in praising God that all seventeen of our loved ones are now safe,' CAM said in a statement on Thursday.

'Thank you for your fervent prayers throughout the past two months. We hope to provide more information as we are able.'

Both the US and Canadian governments have said they do not pay ransoms for kidnapped citizens. But officials from the State Department and FBI have been working in Haiti to help secure the safe release of the hostages.

The gang's leader, Wilson Joseph, aka Lanmò Sanjou or 'Death Without Days,' has appeared in internet videos wearing a Spider-Man mask, had said he was willing to kill the hostages.

The group was abducted by a gang known as 400 Mawozo on October 16 - exactly two months before all were rescued. The gang had demanded $1 million per missionary. It's unclear if the ransom money was paid

Haitian police have sought the gang's leader since last December for crimes including assassination, kidnapping, vehicle theft and hijacking of cargo trucks.

Authorities said they were trying to negotiate with Joly 'Yonyon' Germine, a jailed gang member considered to be the second-in-command of 400 Mawozo.

The widely-feared group, whose name loosely translates to '400 inexperienced men,' is responsible for approximately 80 percent of the kidnappings in Haiti and is often associated with 'collective kidnappings' in which they abduct entire cars or buses of people.

Members are known to use rape, assassination and abduction, among other methods, to maintain their hold on Haiti's streets, businesses and power players.

Dan Hooley, a former CAM director, said that some of the missionaries had not been in Haiti for long.

One family had lived there for 'a couple of months,' he told the New York Times, and another man had arrived the day before the kidnappings to work on a relief project related to an earthquake that struck in August.

He described CAM as 'the big dog in the mission world,' capable of importing containers full of medicines into Haiti whereas others 'just can't get it done.'

The group was founded in 1981 'to be a trustworthy and efficient channel for Amish, Mennonite, and other conservative Anabaptist groups and individuals to minister to physical and spiritual needs around the world.'

The missionary organization reported a revenue of more than $130 million in 2019, largely through donations, and operates in 126 countries.

A person familiar with the situation claimed one of the abducted Americans posted a cry for help in a WhatsApp group as the kidnapping was occurring.

'Please pray for us!! We are being held hostage, they kidnapped our driver. Pray pray pray. We don't know where they are taking us,' the abductee wrote.

400 Mawozo gang leader Wilson Joseph also known as Lanmò Sanjou  wears Spiderman mask in a video posted to YouTube

Wilson Joseph aka Lanmò Sanjou has been wanted by Haitian police since December 2020

Gangs have extended their control of territory in Haiti since the assassination in July of President Jovenel Moise. One gang coalition in October created a nationwide fuel shortage by blocking access to storage terminals. 

Haitians say everyone from well-heeled elites to working class street vendors face the threat of abduction by the gangs.

The US State Department travel advisory warns US citizens to avoid visiting the Caribbean nation, noting 'kidnapping is widespread and victims regularly include US citizens.'

Previously confined to the poorer districts of the capital, gangs have recently extended their reach and increased the number of kidnappings, as the country, already struggling with a years-long social and economic crisis, was hit by a presidential assassination and a major earthquake.

Hundreds of people have been kidnapped for ransom since January in Haiti, according to the Center for Analysis and Research in Human Rights (CARDH).