Mesac Damas (born July 2, 1976) is an American man convicted of the murder of his wife and five children at their home in Collier County, Florida, in 2009.
Early life
Mesac Damas was born in Haiti on July 2, 1976. Damas had an unstable family life and was influenced in his youth by domestic violence and poverty.
He was raised an Evangelical Christian by his mother and father until the age of 10 when his parents left for the United States, leaving him in Haiti with extended family members who practiced Haitian Voodoo. As an adult, Damas identifies as an Evangelical Christian.
At the age of 19, Damas left Haiti and relocated to the United States, where he has lived ever since.
At the time of the murders, Damas was 33 years old and worked as a chef at a local ale house. He described himself as "the best of the best" in his line of work.
In January 2009, eight months prior to the murders, Damas was arrested for domestic violence battery against his wife, Guerline, whom he had been with for 12 years. The incident arose over Damas' suspicions of unfaithfulness on the part of his wife.
Murders
In a statement to US Marshals, Damas divulged that on Wednesday, September 16, 2009, his wife, Guerline Damas, brought up the topic of divorce while at home that evening. Damas stated that the conversation became frenzied, and that at one point he said to his wife, "Divorce me? I'll [expletive] kill you."
The following morning, Thursday, September 17, 2009, Damas followed his wife to work for her 5:00AM shift at Publix to make sure she was "really there". Another argument then ensued when she discovered that he had followed her.
Damas stated that the conversation of the night before lingered in his mind all day, causing him to become increasingly angry over the subject. Damas reported to work that evening but clocked out after working only two hours, saying that he couldn't work because he wasn't feeling well and had a "pounding headache". Damas would later tell agents that at the time, "bad spirits" and voices were telling him that his wife would leave him.
After leaving work, Damas arrived at a local supermarket where he purchased a Berkley fillet knife, a roll of silver duct tape, and a pack of gum.
When he arrived home, Damas said that his wife did not speak to him except to ask him to sign immigration papers and tell him that she still intended to leave. It was then that Damas grabbed a knife, tied her with a rope, and duct-taped her mouth.
Damas said he could not describe any of the events after that, except to say, "it's bad, it's criminal." When agents asked whether anyone helped him commit the crimes, Damas said that he had help from a "visible spirit" but not an actual physical person. Damas asserted that his actions were carried out as a result of a hex that was placed on him by his mother-in-law and/or a coworker of his.
Damas remained in the house until 7:00 am the following day, thinking about how he was going to kill himself. He then changed his clothes, packed a suitcase, and drove to Miami International Airport.
On Saturday September 19, 2009, the family of Guerline Damas contacted the Collier County Sheriff's Office to file a missing person's report, as they had not heard from Guerline since Thursday, September 17, 2009, and she had not reported to work.
At 7:03 that evening, deputies arrived at the Damas family's residence to conduct a welfare check on Guerline Damas and her five children. It was at this time that deputies entered the residence and noticed what appeared to be blood leaking from a closed door under the stairs, with floor rugs pushed against it to cover the space between the bottom of the door and the tile floor beneath it. The residence was then secured as a possible homicide scene.
Deputies pried open the locked door and found the body of Guerline Damas on the floor of a small bathroom, face down in a large pool of dried blood with a black trash bag over her head and her limbs bound with duct tape.
Her autopsy revealed blunt force injury to her right elbow and right eye, and deep, extensive sharp force injury to her left shoulder and neck.
Deputies then discovered the body of Meshach Damas in a second floor bedroom, face down on a mattress atop an area of dried blood. The autopsy of Meshach Damas revealed sharp force injuries to the palm of his right hand, as well as extensive sharp force injuries encircling almost the entirety of his neck.