Doctor from Haiti fatally shot in Port St. Lucie remembered as 'dynamic, charismatic'

PORT ST. LUCIE — The 43-year-old man who died after a shooting last week in Port St. Lucie was a doctor in Haiti who spoke four languages before coming to the United States, according to those who knew him.

Roberto Peigne died after being shot July 13 in the area of Southwest Ewing Avenue and Southwest Addie Street, near Southwest Bayshore Boulevard east of Florida’s Turnpike. Police were called at 11 p.m. after a person heard shots. Peigne was found in a sedan, and died after being taken to a hospital.

He’d delivered food for DoorDash to a home in the 600 block of Southwest Ewing Avenue, and was shot shortly thereafter, said Sgt. John Dellacroce, Port St. Lucie police spokesperson. Investigators don’t believe the shooting was related to the delivery work.

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“Detectives are diligently pursuing all investigative leads and looking into all possible scenarios,” Dellacroce said Monday.

Peigne was remembered by those who knew him at Hispañola Health Partners, described as a U.S. non-profit that promotes health initiatives in the border region of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Peigne is the former medical director at the Salisbury, Conn.-based organization.

“Roberto was a tough guy, but heart of gold and extremely skillful,” said Peter Halle, president of Hispañola Health Partners. “He was a pediatric surgeon of the highest order.”

Louise Lindenmeyr, executive director of Hispañola Health Partners, described Peigne as “super dynamic, charismatic.”

“He had wonderful leadership qualities,” Lindenmeyr said.

She said Peigne specialized in congenital malformations of babies, and spoke Haitian Creole, French, Spanish and English.

Lindenmeyr said she met him in 2011 as she worked in a clinic in Anse-à-Pitres, a town in Haiti at the southeast border with the Dominican Republic.

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“We began working together, and he shared with me his vision of expanding equitable medical health care to the people of the isolated and neglected region of southeastern Haiti,” Lindenmeyr said.

She said with Peigne’s inspiration and the help of others, they became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 2013.

She said because of increasing violence and threats to his life in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, Peigne left and came to Florida where his wife and children were. Lindenmeyr said Peigne already got a certificate to become a surgical assistant.

Peigne’s wife, Marie Kettely Peigne Pierre, 36, said they married in December 2009. She came to the United Stated in 2019 while he stayed in Haiti.

“We were so in love when we met,” said Peigne Pierre, of Boynton Beach. “Socially he used to be a very good, good person, a good doctor.”

Peigne Pierre said they ended up having problems and she said in March 2020 she thought it would be better for them to divorce.

Lindenmeyr said Peigne was involved with DoorDash, but his goal was to return to Haiti and continue working with Hispañola Health Partners to begin surgical services in Anse-à-Pitres.

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A post to the Hispañola Health Partners Facebook page described Peigne as a “gifted and dynamic doctor and surgeon.”

“He was a child of the border region of southeast Haiti who was loved and cherished by thousands on both sides of the frontier,” the post stated. “Helping to found (Hispañola Health Partners) with his vision and energy, charm, and dignity, he lives on with all of us."

Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on Twitter @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com

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This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Roberto Peigne, 43, died after being shot in Port St. Lucie