Joel Pita, a Cuban resident abroad known on social media as "El Pita," publicly reported on Facebook that customs officials at José Martí International Airport in Havana stole the contents of his suitcase during a recent trip to Cuba, which he describes as the worst experience of his life.
"When I arrived home and opened the suitcase, I found that I was missing flip-flops, shoes, a shirt, everything. Perfume, watch... They stole everything from me," Pita recounted in the video, directly blaming the workers at Terminal 3 of José Martí for the theft.
The trip was not for tourism, but for a painful personal reason: "I went to Cuba out of necessity. I had to bring my father out, who passed away two years ago, and since there is no family there to take him out, I took him out and kept him."
His mother, who was traveling with him, was also a victim. "My mom had a full can of food, and when she got home, what she had was half," he reported.
Pita was emphatic in describing the mechanism of the theft: "When the suitcase comes out, it already comes out with everything stolen."
The case is not isolated. In December 2023, two employees from the same Terminal 3 were arrested accused of stealing belongings from luggage, and in February 2024, another worker at José Martí was arrested for package theft. These isolated arrests have not resolved the structural problem.
In March 2025, the luggage of an elderly woman traveling from Miami arrived two days late and was completely looted, including essential medications. In November of the same year, a Spanish influencer of Cuban descent referred to the airport as "my worst nightmare", documenting thefts, wait times of up to two hours, and employees demanding "incentives" in dollars.
The most documented modus operandi, known since 2019, involves opening the zipper with a pen without leaving a visible trace, removing items, and then resealing the luggage. In May 2025, a Cuban shared on social media a method to protect luggage using garbage bags sealed with adhesive tape inside the suitcase, warning that locks are ineffective against this technique.
Pita also described other challenges of the trip: fuel costs reach $100 for 10 liters (about 50,000 Cuban pesos), and power outages are frequent. He noted that only eight people were on his flight, all connected to agencies, reflecting the drastic decline in air traffic to the island.
He directed a direct message to Díaz-Canel's government: "Send undercover agents getting off the plane with a fake suitcase full of sneakers or something, and you'll see how many things are missing when you open that suitcase."
And he warned the Cuban community abroad: "A Cuban who goes to Cuba should not make any claims because you have been warned, and a war that has been announced does not kill soldiers."
"I don't plan to go to Cuba until Cuba changes. Hopefully Donald Trump will help us make that change," concluded Pita, who asserts that she will not return to the island as long as these conditions persist.
Filed under: