An elderly man of 92 years and his granddaughter reported that a presumably fraudulent power of attorney may have revoked a previous mandate and stripped the family of their only home, in a case that involves notaries, Housing, Physical Planning, and the municipal Prosecutor's Office of Bauta, in Havana.
In various reports on social media, the family claims to have filed formal complaints for forgery of public documents and theft, but states that the institutions have not provided a solution after months of efforts.
The grandfather denies having signed or consented to the power of attorney that nullifies the one he had previously granted to his granddaughter — co-owner by right of representation — and that would have facilitated the sale or transfer of the property to third parties.
A new power of attorney supposedly issued at the Notary in Bauta by notary Arais Hernández Loyola would revoke the previous one and empower third parties to “buy, exchange, sell, agree on prices, and receive payments,” even suggesting that the elderly man was “giving away” his home. The family asserts that such consent never existed.
According to the complaint made by the granddaughter, Yenisey González, the revocation of the power of attorney in her favor was not registered in a timely manner in the notarial system, which "concealed" the act and allowed the new attorney to proceed with procedures in Housing, Physical Planning, and law firms.
The elderly man questions the logic of the document that would leave him and his family homeless.
“Do you think that… I would create such an outrageous power of attorney to hand over my house to anyone?… That would be the lowest… to take away the house from his granddaughter and granddaughters, who are the ones that have taken care of him,” he stated, calling for “justice to be served.”
The granddaughter recounts that, after her temporary departure from the country with her daughter, she left the house in the care of acquaintances and returned eight months later, only to find that those individuals claimed to have "bought" the house.
Reports that she was forcibly evicted, that the property was subjected to measurements by Housing and Physical Planning officials, and that a “new power” —with acts of last will and attached declarations of heirs— is circulating, which she does not recognize and considers null.
The family mentions the notaries Yanet Cabañas, Arais Hernández Loyola, Iris Moreno Villamil (or Iris Villamil), and executives such as Nora (notary office management) and Mariceli (Property Registry).
They claim that, despite early warnings, they were told that "everything was in order" and later that the revocation of power "had not been uploaded to the system."
Municipal officials allegedly processed a new technical report on the property without the owner's consent (the grandfather) and acknowledged that the property “had been sold,” despite previously denying any fraud, according to the family’s account.
The family claims to have filed reports; the Prosecutor's Office would have explained that an investigation and summonses would begin, but —according to the complainants— the case has entered a “drift of deadlines” (ranging from weeks to months) without a definitive response.
Contacts have been reported with the PCC in Bauta (official Leonardo), with the provincial PCC (official with the last name Vinajera), with the Provincial Directorate of Justice of Artemisa (director Dialeidis), with the Ministry of Justice, Citizen Attention, and the Ministry of Housing, without any conclusive progress, according to the family.
The family claims to have evidence and reiterates that the grandfather did not go to any notary or give consent for the "revocatory" power of attorney that would have annulled the mandate in favor of the granddaughter and transferred the authority to manage the property.
They also question why the act did not require a medical opinion or witnesses capable of verifying the grantor's capacity given their age and sensory conditions (poor vision and hearing), and why the claim that "all family members were outside of Cuba" was accepted without question.
The family is seeking the annulment of the challenged power, restoration of ownership and protection against new attempts of dispossession.
They demand that the Prosecutor's Office and the Judiciary act swiftly, that responsibilities are determined, and that the case is not delayed any further, given the vulnerability of the grandfather. "This grandfather deserves justice," states the complaint circulated on social media.
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