A Cuban man is arrested for an unusual robbery on a national bus

A Cuban citizen identified as Argelio Rojas was arrested after being caught stealing parts from inside a national bus that was covering the Holguín–Cienfuegos route. The report was made by the Facebook page Cazador-Cazado, which shared images of the detainee, the bus involved, and the stolen items.

According to the publication, the individual was on the bus and, presumably bored, began to steal seat belts and the cord from the curtain rods. “As if he were a mechanic,” the page wrote, stating that a police patrol stopped him and that the man will be charged with theft. “What is clear is that a patrol took him away and now he is caught and will be prosecuted for thefts,” wrote Cazador-Cazado.

However, a user identified as Yucek Rodríguez contradicted this account in the comments of the post. According to him, the events occurred at the Holguín terminal and not during the journey. He explained that it was the driver who detected a technical failure in the bus, and when they proceeded to change vehicles, the theft of the parts was discovered. "That happened at the Holguín terminal and the patrol didn't stop the bus; it was the driver who realized there was a problem because the bus was malfunctioning, and when they turned to change the vehicle, they called the patrol. So that paragraph saying the police stopped it is incorrect. Tell the truth; don’t turn it into a novel or sensationalize things. Tell the truth because all the travelers at the terminal that day know it, and there weren't a few," he wrote.

This case adds to other incidents that have occurred recently in Cuban interprovincial transportation. In March 2025, a passenger reported the theft of his luggage during a state bus journey from Camagüey to Havana. “At 3:40 am a theft is detected in the luggage compartment, and this is where our odyssey begins when the driver tells us that he is not responsible for the thefts (…) Now I wonder, with what safety can one travel interprovincially if the basic assurance is not guaranteed, which is the care of our belongings that we work so hard to have for our livelihoods,” wrote Rafael Moyet.

Days later, three individuals attempted to carry out a robbery on a bus on the Havana–Camagüey route. One of them hid in a suitcase in the vehicle's compartment, while the other two acted as passengers. The driver detected suspicious behavior and stopped the bus. The passengers confronted the alleged thieves and, before the police arrived, gave them a beating.

In December 2024, a pickpocket was caught in the act of stealing inside a public transport bus in Havana. The victim reported that a cellphone and over 12,000 pesos were taken from him. The driver stopped the vehicle and the police searched the suspect in the street.

These cases reflect the growing public concern over insecurity in public and state transportation, as well as the inadequate institutional response to a wave of crimes that directly affects travelers within the country.

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