Residents of the Fructuoso Rodríguez neighborhood in Cárdenas took justice into their own hands by capturing and detaining an alleged thief on the fifth floor of building 19, located at the corner of Las Brujitas, across from the Rent a Car, as reported by journalist Christian Arboláez on Facebook.
A photo of the incident shows a young man with visible tattoos on his arms and legs, sitting on the ground with his hands tied with rope and surrounded by standing neighbors.
"It was the neighbors themselves who managed to catch him, while the authorities have not yet arrived at the scene," Arboláez stated.
A video recorded shortly after shows the moment a police officer arrives at the scene, unties the individual, and takes him into custody, while neighbors look on.
"It's what annoys me, a young kid. Work hard, clean the streets. I'm out here cleaning the streets and I'm 60 years old," said one of the attendees.
The scene repeats with a frequency that no longer surprises anyone in Cuba: citizens, fed up with waiting for a police response that does not come, take it upon themselves to immobilize those who threaten them.
In October 2025, a man was arrested in Cárdenas who confessed to nine robberies in the municipality and had a history of theft and violent robbery.
In December of that same year, two masked individuals broke into a home in Boca de Camarioca, seriously injuring a couple and stealing 135,000 Cuban pesos, 4,000 dollars, jewelry, and cell phones.
In February of this year, the theft of a power station in broad daylight sparked outrage on social media.
In April, an armed robbery was reported at an ice cream factory. And in May, a man was murdered inside his own home in the municipality.
The pattern of "neighborhood justice" is not exclusive to Cárdenas either.
In April, residents of Veguita de Galo, in Santiago de Cuba, captured a young man armed with a machete before the Police arrived.
In May, neighbors in the Modelo neighborhood in Camagüey tied up a man who was caught trying to steal from a home. The dynamic is always the same: citizens take action because they do not trust that authorities will arrive in time.
The numbers support that mistrust. The Cuban Citizen Audit Observatory (OCAC) recorded 2,833 verified crimes in Cuba during 2025, a 115% increase compared to 2024 and a 337% increase relative to 2023.
Thefts were the most common crime, with 1,536 cases. Matanzas, the province where Cárdenas is located, topped the national ranking with 503 verified crimes.
The regime acknowledged in July 2025 that crime remained high and that the population was dissatisfied, although it insisted that its statistics showed a downward trend.
Independent sources point to a structural cause: the police are focusing resources on political repression while citizen security deteriorates, and as much as 20% of the officers may have left the force in the past year.
This month, the Cuban actor Luis Alberto García publicly warned about the rise of crime on the Island, joining a chorus of voices that the regime prefers to ignore. Meanwhile, in Cárdenas, it is the neighbors who continue to do the work that the authorities do not.
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