Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) Haiti Foreign Minister Bocchit Edmond confirmed Monday that five Americans on the island have been arrested.

Three other people also have been arrested, two foreign nationals and one Haitian, Edmond said.

The identities of the people taken into custody were not immediately available.

Haiti's police chief, Michel-Ange Gédéon, told CNN the eight individuals are being held for what he described as possession of illegal weapons.

Earlier, local authorities told CNN the Americans were being held on conspiracy charges. The foreign minister did not confirm the conspiracy charges.

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