Arrests made in connection with the murder of a guard at a cooperative in Santiago de Cuba

Authorities arrested six men in recent hours involved in the murder of a security guard and the near-fatal assault on another during a robbery at an agricultural cooperative in the municipality of Contramaestre, Santiago de Cuba, official sources confirmed this Wednesday.

The Ministry of the Interior (Minint) reported in a statement published by the provincial newspaper that, on the night of Monday, August 4, unknown individuals broke into the Basic Cooperative Production Unit (UBPC) Fidel Domenech Rizo located in Pueblo Nuevo, in the municipality of Baire, with the intent to steal sheep.

To achieve their objective, they killed one of the guards and seriously injured the other with a sharp weapon, “to the point of thinking he had died”. After the attack, they left the scene with 13 animals and stolen items.

Minint officials began investigations into the case in the early hours of Tuesday and, "within a few hours, several receivers of the stolen meat were identified, as well as individuals associated with the commission of the act," stated the official announcement.

The investigation process continues to determine the individual involvement of those detained. "There will be no impunity for the perpetrators of such reprehensible criminal acts," the authorities warned.

A post on the Facebook profile “Héroes del Moncada”, linked to Minint, stated that six criminals were apprehended, all men aged between 33 and 43, and that the events were clarified in less than 24 hours, with the cooperation of local residents. “The attackers will be prosecuted by the courts with the severity that such a reprehensible crime requires,” it emphasized.

He also specified that the stolen animals had already been "sacrificed in culinary and recreational facilities in the municipality." Meanwhile, the police investigation continues to determine whether some "identified receivers, who are also under investigation," were involved in the incidents.

The Minint did not disclose the identity of the deceased guard. In the Facebook post, some people identified him by the name Ismael. “Justice!!!!!!! for our dear neighbor Ismael,” a young woman demanded.

Party officials, government representatives, and the Minint in the municipality of Contramaestre met on Wednesday with workers from the UBPC and residents of the town of Baire to inform them about the arrest of the six individuals currently implicated in the crime.

The incident has caused deep shock among the residents of the area, who are demanding that the law be applied with the severity that the situation deserves.

In recent years, there have been numerous murders of security guards from state and private companies in the country, particularly in Santiago de Cuba, amid a worrying wave of violence and crime, characterized by the increase in all kinds of criminal activities.

In 2024, alarms were raised in that eastern province after several guards were murdered at their workplaces by individuals intent on stealing money and other valuables from the entities they were protecting.

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