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The arrest of a young Cuban man in Hialeah, accused of stealing horses in central Florida, has raised alarms once again about a phenomenon that has long worried rural communities in the southern part of the state: the systematic theft of equines, often for illegal trafficking or clandestine slaughter.
The Volusia County Sheriff's Office confirmed that two of the four horses stolen last week from a property in Osteen have been located in South Florida, following an investigation that involved several state and federal agencies.
The suspect, identified as Lázaro Benítez Guzmán, 26 years old, was arrested in Hialeah and faces charges of grand theft and trafficking in stolen property.
Authorities have added an element that has drawn special attention. According to Click Orlando, Benítez Guzmán is a Cuban immigrant in an irregular immigration status, which has led the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to issue a detention order against him, alongside the criminal proceedings.
The case remains open, and law enforcement continues the search for the two other horses that have not yet been recovered.
Beyond the specific arrest, the case connects with a series of similar incidents reported in South Florida in recent years, some of which have been particularly violent.
In rural areas of Miami-Dade and Broward, horse thefts have been reported, resulting in the animals being slaughtered and dismembered, allegedly to sell their meat illegally.
In several of those episodes, the owners described the emotional impact as devastating, as these were animals raised for years and considered part of the family.
Activists and residents have repeatedly warned that these are not isolated incidents. The recurring pattern of nighttime thefts, the relocation of animals to other counties, and the disappearance of any trace has fueled fears of a clandestine network operating in poorly monitored rural areas.
For the Cuban community in Florida, the case also reignites an uncomfortable debate. The mention of the detainee's immigration status occurs within a context of increased scrutiny and a tightening of immigration policies, where any crime committed by an undocumented immigrant tends to be amplified and has consequences that extend beyond the criminal realm.
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