Related videos:
The Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Havana requested 30 years in prison for Ardenys García Álvarez, the main defendant in an alleged plot for an armed uprising against the Cuban regime, along with 29 other individuals who face sentences ranging from 10 to 25 years.
García Álvarez, 40 years old, originally from Cienfuegos and a resident of the United States since 2014, illegally entered Cuba on October 31, 2023, via the coast of Matanzas aboard a jet ski, according to the indictment document accessed by Martí Noticias.
According to the Prosecutor's Office, the accused transported firearms, ammunition, bladed weapons, and communication equipment with the aim of establishing armed cells in the provinces of Cienfuegos, Camagüey, Las Tunas, and Santiago de Cuba.
The accusation states that the plan was promoted and financed from abroad by the organization “La Nueva Nación Cubana en Armas”, led by William Cabrera González, a resident of Florida, who is included by the regime on its list of “terrorists,” in coordination with the entity “Auto Defensa del Pueblo.”
According to the indictment, the individuals involved allegedly planned to carry out attacks against authorities of the Ministry of the Interior and the Revolutionary Armed Forces, sabotage sugar cane fields and tourist centers, and force the resignation of government leaders through coercion.
The document also details that the accused gathered satellite photographs and information about strategic military units in Cienfuegos, and located the homes of high-ranking police officials for contingency plans.
The Prosecutor's Office states that thousands of dollars and Cuban pesos were used to finance logistics, acquire military-grade supplies, and recruit citizens in situations of economic vulnerability. Among the seized items are five handguns and ammunition hidden in a container.
The 30 defendants face charges of terrorism, offenses against constitutional order, espionage, illegal possession of firearms, illegal exit from the national territory, and illegal currency trafficking.
However, the prosecution itself acknowledges that it is unclear whether any of the described activities actually materialized in practice, a detail that undermines the regime's narrative regarding the seriousness of the alleged conspiracy.
The mother of the accused, Marta Álvarez, rejected the official version and defended her son to Martí Noticias: “He had been living in the United States for almost 13 years. He returned to Cuba on a jet ski on October 29, 2023, and has been locked up in a cell this entire time.”
Cabrera González, for his part, denied any subversive intent in July 2024: "We provide military training, but not with subversive objectives," he stated in an interview.
The case also has an aspect that the regime deliberately omitted. An investigation by Telemundo revealed that García Álvarez had federal charges in the United States for "conspiracy to transport and harbor migrants," a fact that the Cuban authorities did not mention in their presentation of the case.
The regime publicly announced the case in July 2024 through the official program "Razones de Cuba," hosted by spokesperson Humberto López, which triggered a wave of memes on social media that questioned the credibility of the official narrative.
The boxer Yordenis Ugás also stated that he was contacted by García Álvarez for "some plans," although he was not included among the accused. Ugás noted that at the time he "thought it was a trap."
García Álvarez has been in custody since October 2023, over two and a half years before the Prosecutor's Office formally submitted its request for a conviction, highlighting the slow pace of the judicial process in Cuba in cases related to state security.
Filed under: