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The Cuban regime confirmed the release of Salvadoran citizen Otto René Rodríguez Llerena, sentenced to 30 years in prison for his involvement in a terrorist attack at the Meliá Cohíba Hotel in Havana in 1997.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba, Rodríguez Llerena served his entire sentence and was released “in accordance with the laws of the country.”
The attack for which he was sentenced was part of a series of attacks against tourist facilities on the island during the 1990s.
In its statement, the regime defended that "Cuba complies with its laws and ensures that all terrorists face justice," and took the opportunity to criticize the United States, accusing it of allowing the organization and funding of violent acts against Cuba from its territory.
The official narrative highlights that Rodríguez Llerena admitted to placing an explosive device in the lobby of the Meliá Cohíba hotel in Havana on August 3, 1997.
Although the attack did not result in any casualties, it caused, according to the government, material damages estimated at $6,500.
Less than a year later, on June 10, 1998, Rodríguez Llerena returned to Cuba to carry out another mission: to introduce 1,519 grams of C-4 explosive, two detonators, and two watches to activate the charges, but the devices were detected at Customs.
According to the government's accusation, the former Salvadoran military officer had returned by commission of Luis Posada Carriles, with the aim of delivering explosives to an intelligence agent of the regime.
The Supreme People's Court of Cuba initially condemned him to death in 1999; however, in 2010 the sentence was commuted to a 30-year prison term after being found guilty of the continuous crime of terrorism.
In 2024, the Cuban regime released Raúl Ernesto Cruz León, who is also Salvadoran, after he completed his 30-year prison sentence on the island for his involvement in a series of terrorist attacks in 1997 in Havana.
Cruz León, who was one of the perpetrators of the attacks, was arrested and tried in Cuba in connection with the explosions that left several injured and the death of an Italian tourist at the Copacabana hotel, reported the government newspaper Granma.
According to the official account, on September 4, 1997, Cruz León detonated a bomb at the Copacabana hotel in Havana, resulting in the death of young Italian Fabio Di Celmo and injuring 11 others in various hotels across the Cuban capital.
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