The Cuban State Security arrested a man in Camagüey and confiscated his cellphone for recording videos of prices in private stores in the city, as reported this Saturday on Facebook by the Cuban Leonor Rodríguez.
Rodríguez explained that she herself had asked her friend to document the prices in those establishments, which she described as "fake stores that must belong to GAESA."
"The fact is that he was detained and his phone was confiscated, supposedly by State Security (G-2). And with the usual threat that he cannot make any videos," wrote the complainant.
In the video recorded moments before the arrest, someone is heard warning, "that's illegal," upon seeing the prices being recorded, to which the recorder replied, "What is illegal? Being aware of what you are experiencing?"
Rodríguez attributed the arrest to informants who reported the man to the authorities. "I didn’t think those SOBs still have those snitches who are starving and won't stop ratting out those who are speaking and recording the truth," he wrote.
The case is part of a growing pattern of repression against those who document the economic crisis in Cuba.
The most direct precedent is that of Julio César Duque de Estrada Ferrer, from Santiago de Cuba, sentenced in September 2025 to four years and six months in prison for filming with his cellphone a line to buy liquefied gas in a public area. The court found him guilty of "disobedience" and "assault."
In 2026, the repression for recording has intensified. Independent journalist José Antonio López Piña reported having been detained and beaten in July in Santiago de Cuba while filming on the street.
Just on Friday, an agent of the State Security was recorded threatening residents of El Fanguito for posting images of their presence on social media.
The members of the audiovisual project El4tico, from Holguín, also face charges for their documentation work: the Prosecutor's Office accused them of "propaganda against the constitutional order" and "incitement to commit a crime" after their arrest in February 2026, according to the wife of one of the detainees.
The motivation to record in Camagüey is understandable given the current economic context. In that city, a malt beverage was sold for 325 Cuban pesos each in April, and a purchase of various products on Palomino Street cost the equivalent of 180 dollars in June.
The Cuban peso depreciated by more than 30% against the informal dollar between February and June 2026.
The repression contrasts with a statement from the Ministry of Domestic Trade itself, which in 2019 stated that customers have the right to take photos of prices and items in stores and shopping centers, a position that is openly contradicted by the current repressive practices.
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