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The First Criminal Chamber of the Provincial People's Court of Cienfuegos sentenced four men to prison terms ranging from four to six years for trafficking synthetic cannabinoids, in an oral and public trial with an "exemplary" nature.
In the case, recorded as cause number 12 of 2026, the four defendants were found guilty of offenses related to illicit drugs or substances with similar effects, as reported this Wednesday by the newspaper 5 de Septiembre.
The defendants Franklyn Ángel Fuentes Villa, Frank Abel Pedraza Pérez, and Marco Antonio Angulo Comas each received a four-year prison sentence, while Pedro Luis Díaz de Villegas Fernández was sentenced to six years, a harsher penalty than that of his codefendants due to his status as a repeat offender and the harmfulness of the acts.
According to the official version of the case, the first three accused conceived a plan to profit from the sale of synthetic cannabinoid —commonly referred to as "the chemical" or "little paper"— and, together with Díaz de Villegas, purchased the drug at 5,000 Cuban pesos per gram.
Among them, they prepared the wrappers, which they began to sell at a price of 300 pesos each. The police arrested them as they were getting into a vehicle to continue the distribution.
According to the information, when deciding the sentences for each accused, the court considered the "young age" of three of the detainees as a mitigating factor, while in the case of Díaz de Villegas, it took into account his recidivism in committing crimes and the harmful nature of the acts, due to the "toxicity and addictive potential" of these drugs and the "devastating effects they cause on the health of consumers, with more severe impacts than others," as well as damage in the familial and social spheres.
Synthetic cannabinoids have experienced an alarming increase in Cuba: from 467 people treated in emergency services for their consumption in 2024, the number rose to 886 in 2025, according to official data.
In addition to prison sentences, the defendants received additional penalties of deprivation of public rights and prohibition from leaving the national territory.
The trial held in Cienfuegos is part of the Fifth National Exercise for Crime Prevention and Confrontation, launched by the government last Sunday and which includes the execution of about 20 "exemplary" processes across the country.
This Tuesday, the Provincial People's Court of Matanzas sentenced two men to 15 years in prison and a third to 10 years for robbery with violence, also in a trial deemed exemplary.
In March, in Artemisa, two defendants were sentenced to 15 years in prison for possessing just 1.74 grams of synthetic cannabinoid, also in a process intended to serve as a lesson.
In recent years, the regime has resorted to this type of trial to exert social control, through hearings held publicly and with extensive coverage in official media, in order to dissuade the public in the face of rising crime.
The new national campaign against crime takes place days after popular protests were recorded in at least 12 municipalities of Havana between May 13 and 17, featuring slogans such as "Electricity and food!" and "Down with the dictatorship!", which resulted in at least 14 arrests.
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