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The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Kash Patel, reacted this Wednesday to the federal accusation against Raúl Castro for the downing of the planes from Brothers to the Rescue with a strong message: "This FBI has never forgotten."
The announcement of the charges was made by interim Attorney General Todd Blanche at the Tower of Freedom in Miami, a symbol of the Cuban exile, coinciding with Cuba's Independence Day.
Patel remembered the four victims of the attack that occurred on February 24, 1996: Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales, three U.S. citizens and one legal resident, whose bodies were never recovered.
"In 1996, four members of Brothers to the Rescue took off from Florida on a humanitarian mission to assist rafters fleeing from Castro's Cuba. Cuban MiG fighters shot down their civilian planes over international waters," wrote the FBI director.
The substitute indictment filed by the Department of Justice accuses Raúl Castro and five others of conspiracy to murder U.S. citizens, two counts of destruction of aircraft, and four individual counts of murder.
The five Cuban military officers named alongside Castro are Lorenzo Alberto Pérez-Pérez, Emilio José Palacio Blanco, José Fidel Gual Barzaga, Raúl Simanca Cárdenas, and Luis Raúl González-Pardo Rodríguez, all connected to the Cuban military aviation.
Of the six defendants, González-Pardo Rodríguez is the only one currently in U.S. territory.
The former military officer was arrested on November 12, 2025, for immigration fraud and false statements in federal documents, after entering the United States in 2024 under humanitarian parole while concealing his nearly three-decade history in the Cuban Air Force and Air Defense from 1980 to 2009.
According to federal authorities, he faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
During the official announcement, Blanche explained that the accusation was filed by a federal grand jury convened in Miami on April 23, 2026, and declassified this Wednesday.
"For nearly 30 years, the families of four murdered Americans have awaited justice," stated the acting prosecutor, who also conveyed a direct message on behalf of the Trump administration: "The United States and President Trump do not forget and will not forget their citizens."
The centerpiece of the case is an audio recording from June 1996 in which Raúl Castro, then Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, describes the order given to carry out the attack. "Take them down in the sea when they appear; and do not consult those who have the authority," is heard saying the former Cuban leader.
This is supplemented by over 10,000 pages of declassified FBI documents that reveal the existence of a "Operation Venice," allegedly planned since February 13, 1996, which would suggest a premeditated action.
The Cuban regime rejected the accusations and described the judicial process as a "deception." In contrast, Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar celebrated the announcement with a statement filled with political symbolism: "It is a glorious day for Cubans. Today marks the beginning of the end for the Castro family."
Although the accusation represents one of the most significant judicial actions against the Cuban military leadership in decades, its practical implications remain limited. Raúl Castro is 94 years old, has never traveled to the United States, and there is no extradition treaty between the two countries.
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