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Martiño Ramos Soto, the professor sentenced in his country to 13 and a half years in prison for sexually abusing a minor, who was detained in Havana, was planning to get married in order to obtain Cuban residency.
In statements to Televisión de Galicia (TVG), Interpol inspector Roberto Llamazares stated that the man “was trying to regularize his situation.”
Ramos Soto arrived in Havana in July and "was trying to remain unnoticed," living "a quiet life," Llamazares added.
The pedophile lived in El Vedado, ran a screen printing shop, and held photo sessions.
According to 20 minutos, Martín Soto, as he was known in Havana, was a regular at the bars and restaurants of Vedado: “he visited exhibitions, participated in artistic workshops, and collaborated with local artists.”
La Sexta explains that, for months, the Cuban police had informed Spanish authorities that Ramos Soto was "located and calm."
“Always goes with a mulatto,” appeared in the police reports sent from Cuba, claims La Sexta. The woman was to be his future wife.
The case
According to the agency EFE, the National Revolutionary Police (PNR) arrested the fugitive a few days ago, whose extradition was formally requested by the Government of Spain following an order issued by the Provincial Court of Ourense on October 31.
Sources consulted by the press agency stated that the Cuban authorities had known for months that Ramos Soto was on the island and that he was being monitored due to the pending sentence. However, his capture did not take place until now.
According to the information released, both governments are willing to facilitate the transfer of the detainee to Spain, although there is currently no active extradition agreement between Havana and Madrid, noted EFE.
Ramos is among the ten most wanted fugitives by Spanish justice, according to the Fugitive Section of the National Police, which on Monday sought public assistance to gather leads on his whereabouts.
A native of Ourense and 50 years old, he was convicted of sexual abuse and sadistic practices against a minor student, acts committed when the victim was between 12 and 16 years old.
After being sentenced in July 2025, the man disobeyed the order to report to prison and went on the run.
Police investigations indicate that he first fled to Portugal, from where he traveled to Brazil, then to Peru, and finally to Cuba, a country where he would have logistical support, according to Spanish authorities' suspicions.
Ramos, in addition to having been a teacher of early childhood and primary education, was a former member of the now-defunct party En Marea and was known in his hometown for teaching music and for his political activism.
Her inclusion in the list of priority fugitives is due, according to the Spanish police, to a strategic consideration, alongside other wanted criminals, including drug traffickers, sexual predators, a murderer, and a notorious robber.
Ramos resided in Havana and posted photos on social media while he was wanted by the Spanish authorities
According to the newspaper La Voz de Galicia, Martiño Ramos contacted the victim when she was 11 years old and his music student, initiating a relationship of manipulation and harassment that led to continued abuse over several years.
The attacks began in the school classroom and intensified outside the institution, with episodes of physical violence and sadistic practices.
The minor, who was 16 years old when she decided to report, broke her silence in September 2021, after one of the most violent incidents, in which the teacher hit her and left her in an abandoned area.
During the trial, it was revealed that Ramos had contacted other minor female students with similar intentions, raising alarm in the educational community.
The case prompted a public protest by parents and teachers in 2024, demanding that the Xunta de Galicia establish a protocol to remove from the classroom teachers being investigated for sexual offenses.
The Ministry of Education confirmed that Ramos was suspended from his job and pay after the first court ruling was made public, and a year later, the Galician government implemented a new protocol to combat violence in the educational sphere.
The court ruling from the Provincial Court of Ourense not only sentenced him to 13 and a half years in prison but also imposed a 21-year ban on working with minors, 8 and a half years of supervised release, a 20 and a half year prohibition on approaching the victim, and a compensation of 30,000 euros.
The Supreme Court upheld the sentence in July 2025, but the convicted individual took advantage of his provisional release to flee Spain before receiving the official notification.
Meanwhile, Ramos was residing in Havana and maintaining a public presence on social media, sharing images of his daily life on the island.
According to sources from the Spanish government and the Superior Court of Justice of Galicia (TSXG), the extradition process could be lengthy due to the absence of a current treaty between Cuba and Spain.
Ramos was also known for his involvement in the cultural and political life of Ourense: he directed musical groups, organized historical events such as A Bela Auria, and participated in left-wing movements like Ourense en Común and En Marea, although he never held elected positions.
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