When Yomil Hidalgo officially introduced his new girlfriend, thousands of followers rushed to explore the Instagram profile of Rodmelis Núñez —@rodme_nc— and found much more than they expected.
Among photos of beaches, restaurants, and nightlife, a reel published in July 2022 caught the attention of those who were beginning to know her: a video in which Rodmelis recalled when she was detained. The clip begins with a video of a relative or friend from that moment stating, "Detained for more than 48 hours, her name is Rodmelis Núñez, she is 19 years old."
The phrase accurately evokes the anguish of those who sought information about her during her disappearance: those days without news, not knowing where she was or what had happened to her.
Among the comments, there is a question from a user: "Was that on July 11th?" Rodmelis replied with a single word: "yes," thus confirming his detention on that significant date.
The video was published in July 2022, just as the first anniversary of the historic protests of July 11, 2021 was approaching. The video also includes footage of Rodmelis during her detention and screenshots of her family's stories asking for help to locate her and find out about her well-being.
The protests of 11J were the largest popular demonstrations in Cuba in decades: hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in over 50 cities demanding freedom and an end to the economic crisis. The regime's response was massive repression. More than 600 people were arrested in the initial days, and organizations like Justicia 11J documented up to 1,540 arrests related to those protests.
Rodmelis Núñez appears as detainee number 689 in the Final Report of July 2021 by the Pan American Democracy Foundation, identified as "Rodmelis Núñez." Other lists from that time specifically place her in Batabanó, a municipality in that province.
At that time, Rodmelis was a young Cuban practically unknown outside her circle. Four years later, her name became a trending topic in just a matter of hours.
It was this week when Yomil introduced her publicly with a carousel of romantic photos on the beach: "I want to officially introduce my girl, her name is @rodme_nc and she’s the one who has had me in love for a while now. Say hello to her, she's super nice and down-to-earth as well."
The post garnered nearly 45,000 likes and over 2,200 comments within a few hours, sparking curiosity about who this young woman with 131,000 followers really was, as she blends fashion, beaches, and everyday moments in her profile.
What no one expected to find was that 2022 reel: intimate, silent, and revealing. The contrast between the romantic figure that Yomil presented to the world and this lesser-known aspect of Rodmelis's story is what has generated a new wave of excitement among those discovering it now.
Rodmelis had never spoken publicly about that experience beyond that video and her one-word response. But that word—"yes"—says more than anything else about who she is.
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