After the Department of Justice formally charged former Cuban dictator Raúl Castro on Wednesday for his alleged involvement in the downing of two civilian aircraft from the organization Brothers to the Rescue on February 24, 1996, the White House released a message in capital letters: "The United States and President Trump do not forget their citizens."
The announcement was made by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche at the Tower of Freedom in Miami, a symbol of the Cuban exile, on a date filled with significance: May 20, Cuba's Independence Day.
"For almost 30 years, the families of four murdered Americans have been waiting for justice," stated Blanche, who summarized the government's position with a blunt phrase: "If you kill Americans, we will pursue you."
President Trump stated regarding this that "the United States will not tolerate a rogue state harboring military, intelligence, and terrorist operations hostile to within just ninety miles of U.S. territory."
The charges against Castro include conspiracy to assassinate American citizens, destruction of aircraft, and four individual counts of murder. The indictment was returned by a grand jury convened in Miami on April 23, 2026, and was declassified this Wednesday.
Alongside Castro, five Cuban military personnel were accused, all of whom were pilots: Lorenzo Alberto Pérez-Pérez, Emilio José Palacio Blanco, José Fidel Gual Bárzaga, Raúl Simanca Cárdenas, and Luis Raúl González-Pardo Rodríguez.
The latter, a 64-year-old former pilot of the Cuban Air Force, is already in U.S. custody: he was arrested on Tuesday, accused of immigration fraud and making false statements to a federal agency for having concealed his military history when applying for permanent residency in April 2025.
The four victims of the crash were Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Costa, Mario Manuel de la Peña, and Pablo Morales, all residents of Miami —three U.S. citizens and one legal resident— whose bodies were never recovered.
According to the accusation, the two unarmed Cessna 337 Skymaster planes were shot down by MiG-29 fighters from the Cuban Air Force over international waters in the Florida Straits while they were conducting search and rescue operations for Cuban rafters. A third plane, piloted by José Basulto, the founder of the organization, managed to escape.
The central piece of the case is an audio recording from June 1996 in which Castro describes the order he issued: "I said to try to shoot them down over the territory, but they would come into Havana and leave... Well, shoot them down over the ocean when they appear; and do not consult those with authority."
At the time of the downing, Raúl Castro held the position of Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, a role that placed him at the pinnacle of the military chain of command.
The congresswoman María Elvira Salazar celebrated the accusation with two phrases: "It's a glorious day for Cubans" and "Today begins the end of the Castro family." For his part, Basulto reacted emotionally: "I have wished for this for a long time. I have wished for justice to be done, for justice to become a reality."
The Cuban regime rejected the accusations: Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez referred to Marco Rubio as a "spokesperson for corrupt and vengeful interests," and the Cuban Embassy in Washington labeled the process as a "deception".
The accusation has a primarily symbolic significance, as there is no extradition treaty between Cuba and the United States, and Castro, at 94 years old, has never set foot on U.S. soil. However, this case marks the first time that U.S. federal justice has formally charged the ex-dictator with one of the gravest crimes committed against citizens of that country in recent decades.
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