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Thieves took advantage of a nighttime blackout to steal the electrical "cataos" from all the apartments in a building located in the Casino Deportivo neighborhood, in the Cerro municipality of Havana, reported resident Amilkar Feria Flores this Friday.
Through her Facebook profile, Feria described the incident as a precisely executed operation during the power outage and alerted neighbors to protect their belongings exposed in common areas.
He also warned that this type of electrical equipment could end up on the informal market, where the scarcity of materials makes these components highly sought after.
"I warn you to take precautions with your belongings and effects that are vulnerable to public access, and be aware that accessories of this kind offered by unofficial street vendors might be stolen," he wrote.
Feria bitterly summarized the situation that millions of Cubans are facing, while agreeing that "a structural crisis as severe as the one we are experiencing will catch up with you, one way or another, on all sides."
The report sparked a wave of similar testimonies. A user identified as Yohandra Pereiro stated that on the same day, at 11:30 in the morning, a similar robbery took place in her building in the Playa municipality.
Ricardo Miguel Hernández stated that they are "using the same pass" in his property and that they are also taking the breakers.
From the Palatino neighborhood, Lisette Roura reported that that same night a water pipe and a shut-off valve were stolen from her building, while Danneys Torres described the pattern as "the new" method of the criminals.
This is not the first time this pattern has been documented in Havana. On April 11, activist Lara Crofs reported a similar case in a Havana building where thieves stole all the breakers during a blackout, the police never responded and the Electric Union reconnected the service directly without available replacements.
The phenomenon is part of an unprecedented wave of crime in Cuba. In 2025, the Cuban Observatory for Citizen Auditing documented 2,833 crimes, an increase of 115% compared to 2024 and 337% compared to 2023.
The thefts totaled 1,536 cases (the most common crime), representing a 479% increase since 2023. Havana recorded 398 verified cases that year.
Power outages in Cuba in 2026 are reaching deficits of up to 2,000 megawatts and interruptions lasting more than 30 consecutive hours, creating windows of darkness and a lack of police presence that thieves systematically exploit.
The shortage of electrical materials makes "cataos," breakers, and cables highly valuable in the black market, turning residential buildings into profitable targets during each power outage.
On the scale of critical infrastructure, the most severe pattern is the theft of dielectric oil from transformers. On April 19, the theft of 600 liters in Amancio, Las Tunas, left 40% of the municipality without electricity, affecting nearly 5,000 customers, including a polyclinic.
On April 2, three men were caught in the act stealing dielectric oil from transformers at the Uruguay sugar mill in Jatibonico, Sancti Spíritus province, for which they were charged with sabotage.
The regime has responded with extreme legal tightening. The People's Supreme Court classifies these thefts as sabotage, with penalties ranging from seven to 30 years, life imprisonment, or the death penalty in severe cases.
Between January 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, 100% of those tried for sabotage against the National Electric System received sentences of over ten years.
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