State Security detains Fuera de la Caja members for hours following summons in Havana

State Security held brothers Betty and Abel from Fuera de la Caja for hours; Anna Bensi and Pastor Pérez Lora were also summoned in Alamar.



Amanda Beatriz and Abel Alejandro, members of Fuera de la CajaPhoto © Facebook / Out of the Box

The Cuban State Security has detained siblings Amanda Beatriz Andrés Navarro and Abel Alejandro Andrés Navarro, members of the youth collective Outside the Box, after summoning them at 10:00 AM to the PNR Unit on Aguilera Street in the 10th of October municipality, Havana.

The father of both young people reported in a video from outside the police station that his children had been held for more than the legal limit of two hours allowed for a police interview. When he went up to inquire about them, he was informed that Betty had already been interrogated, but that she was not allowed to leave. At that moment, Abel was being interviewed.

"Betty had already been interviewed; we were able to speak briefly with her. She explained that her interview went smoothly, without any major issues, and that at that moment she had taken Belito up to be interviewed," the father recounted.

The man openly questioned the police's actions: "We don’t understand why, first of all, they won’t let Betty out if she has already been interviewed and they’re keeping her inside. And secondly, we don’t know why they didn’t interview both of them at the same time, to comply with the timeframe set by the law, which they are also required to follow."

At the same time, content creator Anna Sofía Benítez Silvente, known as Anna Bensi, and Christian pastor Rolando Pérez Lora, "the Herald of Christ," were summoned to the police station in Alamar, in East Havana. By the end of the report, there was no confirmation that either of them had been released.

El Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH) alertó sobre las citaciones, exigió el respeto a la libertad de expresión y condenó la escalada represiva. La organización documentó que los jóvenes realizaron un momento de oración colectiva antes de entrar a los interrogatorios.

The citation for Anna Bensi, signed by First Lieutenant Julio Torres Suárez, summoned her to receive an "official warning," a legal figure that human rights organizations point out as a mechanism of intimidation against activists and opponents. Bensi herself published the citation on Facebook with the message: "I WAS SUMMONED FOR TOMORROW AT 10 AM. DOWN WITH THE DICTATORSHIP."

Bety and Abel had reported on Wednesday that the summons document had multiple irregularities. "The summons is a disaster. It's a poorly drafted document, one that is outside of all legal terms and dates. Moreover, they summoned us for last month. Exactly, the date says June 2. This simply proves that this regime treats the law as a mere decoration," the young man stated.

Citations occurred days after the public confrontation between Anna Bensi and Gerardo Hernández Nordelo, the national coordinator of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR) and former intelligence agent, whom Bensi accused of being the owner of the small business "El Mercadito" and questioned his lifestyle. Hernández hinted at legal actions against her without retracting his positions.

Pastor Pérez Lora had already been arrested in March 2026 for praying in a public park in Matanzas, and his case was documented by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in April of that year. Fuera de la Caja has been subjected to systematic repression since its public emergence, including phone disruptions, account hacking, and intimidating visits to homes.

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CiberCuba Editorial Team

A team of journalists committed to reporting on Cuban current affairs and topics of global interest. At CiberCuba, we work to deliver truthful news and critical analysis.