Mike Fisher, a Canadian content creator who for years has portrayed Cuba as a safe, affordable, and enjoyable tourist destination on his social media, was the victim of a robbery on the Havana Rampa: a criminal snatched a gold chain from around his neck, as he himself reported on Facebook.
"They just brought me the chain, my neck is red," she said, showing the marks of the attack on her neck.
"In Havana, in broad daylight," he added, showing the central street 23, where everything happened, before issuing a warning to the thief: "I'll find you."
The incident is striking due to the contrast between the narrative that Fisher has crafted online and the vastly different reality that thousands of Cubans report daily.
On his channel "Finding Fish," active on Facebook and YouTube, the Canadian—who has been traveling to the island since 1985—often showcases white sandy beaches, plentiful buffets, cigars, rum, and low prices, portraying Cuba as an accessible paradise for Western tourists
That idyllic image had already begun to crumble months earlier. In June, Fisher celebrated on social media a full lunch with a mojito at the Dos Mares hotel in Varadero for 3,100 Cuban pesos -about 7.75 Canadian dollars-, without pointing out that this amount is almost equivalent to the entire monthly minimum wage of a Cuban, set at 3,210 pesos.
Then came the nationwide blackout on July 6, which Fisher experienced in Havana. Upon leaving the Island, the Canadian refined his discourse for the first time: "Cuba is not doing well. Havana is suffering quite a bit, facing daily problems with electricity and water."
Still, he closed that episode with the phrase: "I just landed... and I already miss Cuba."
The question that remains is whether Fisher will continue to promote the image of a Cuba where "nothing happens" after experiencing firsthand what thousands of Cubans report every day.
The assault on the tourist occurs amid an unprecedented rise in criminal activity in Cuba. The Cuban Observatory for Citizen Audit recorded 2,833 verified crimes in 2025, a 115% increase compared to 2024, with thefts being the most common category.
The area where the assault on Fisher took place is not unfamiliar with this phenomenon. In El Vedado, multiple robberies have been reported in 2026: in June, there were more than 30 home invasions in a single week in that area, and on the 4th of that same month, a woman was attacked with a knife to steal her cellphone on that same Havana street.
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