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The wife of Ledián Padrón Guevara, the youngest of the four Cubans who died in the armed confrontation with the Cuban Border Guard troops, has provided one of the most poignant testimonies following the tragedy.
Amid tears and with a shaky voice, Madelaine could barely utter a few words in phone statements gathered by Telemundo 51.
"Justice, justice, justice, for he is not a terrorist," she pleaded between sobs.
Then, when referring to their relationship, he added: "We've been together for a bit over a year."
Ledián was only 25 years old and lived in Houston. In the early hours following the incident, his name was not among the survivors reported by the Cuban authorities, causing distress among family and friends.
He was finally confirmed among the deceased.
The incident occurred on Wednesday in front of Cayo Falcones, in the municipality of Corralillo, Villa Clara, when a vessel registered in Florida was intercepted in Cuban territorial waters.
According to the official version from the Ministry of the Interior (MININT), the boat did not obey the order to stop and fired upon Cuban forces, resulting in an armed exchange.
The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carlos Fernández de Cossío, described the incident as an "attempted armed infiltration for terrorist purposes."
He assured that the vessel was equipped with assault rifles, sniper rifles, pistols, Molotov cocktails, night vision equipment, bulletproof vests, and ammunition.
In total, the Cuban authorities identified ten individuals connected to the case: four deceased and six survivors who remain in custody.
In addition to Ledián Padrón Guevara, Pavel Alling Peña, Michael Ortega Casanova, and Héctor Duani Cruz Correa also passed away.
Their relatives have rejected the label of "terrorists" and are demanding an independent investigation to clarify what happened.
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